Just off Freedom May 10 - 17th, Diamond and probably our last RCCL cruise.

[ryano]

Thanks! I hope it won't be too bad. We're not doing any speciality dining. We'll just be eating in the MDR. We like to sit at a large table so we can meet new people. Have made some lifelong friends that way.

 

Freedom is an awesome ship :) The MDR was just fine. A few minor things but no big deal at all. Our waitstaff was excellent. Enjoy it and come back and tell us about it! :).

[Fat Paul]

The service on the Independence was hit and miss last month. Service at the solarium bar was nonexistent, MDR was OK (anyone remember fresh ground pepper), Raj was very good and our room steward was good. I don't know if it's just that we have been there/done that but I am ready for a different vacation experience. We are almost Diamond plus and would like to reach that but I'm starting to wonder if it matters since we will now only sail in a GS or better

[mark22mac]

Just returned from the enchantment Friday I had the pp and bar service was exceptional. 5-6 bartenders at the oasis bar on sea days beer carts rolling around at the pool. Servers bringing drinks to the people in the overly crowded pool.As good as the service was it'll be our last on enchantment it's just to small I guess we're spoiled now with the freedom and allure. I would rather take that size ship and give up a little service. Even my wife said I never thought I would say I didn't like a cruise but that ship was the worst we've ever been on. Going on the freedom in sept and looking to book oasis in April. Can't wait.

[CP3o]

I was just on her last month and echo many of your sentiments. Its sad too as our April 2012 cruise was SO much different. It was NOT a bad cruise but it certainly wasnt a great cruise either. The overall vibe was way down compared to our Freedom cruise 3 years ago. Drink service was mediocre to downright poor. Overall, most of the crew just seemed to be going through the motions and didnt seem to be as happy as in the past. I ran into several that were pretty rude for no real reason other than what I chalked up to being over worked. This was NOT my experience in 2012!

 

6 out of 10 would be a fair rating for this particular cruise. All in the past were no less than 9.

 

I will cruise Allure because I have wanted to experience one of those ships since they were built and then I will be looking around. At least if I try something new, I wont know how far they have slipped. :)

 

Ugh, I hope RCCL is reading these threads. These are posts by RCCL fans, not pax with unreasonable expectations. If you remember a cruise as lots of fun, you are more tempted to talk it up to friends and book again. If it's simply better than a week at work..............

[GTO-Girl]

We were on the Brilliance last month and there were NO bar servers in the Solarium....NONE......and we only saw one at the main pool.

 

Since they are now pushing the drink packages trying to actually obtain a drink is almost impossible. On our cruise if you wanted a drink you had to go find a bar and stand 6 people deep in a crowd and wait.

 

This is so not what we are used to. They very obviously want to sell less drinks since they already have your money!!

[rch3]

You folks are making me nervous about our return to RC for the first time since 2008. Will be on FOS in August and purchased the pp. One thing about CCL, HAL and NCL - never had to wait for a drink in 12 cruises whether we purchased the package or not.

[Retired LEO]

I and others actually walked away from bars because we could not get served due to the volume of people waiting for drinks..

 

My last time on Enchantment was exactly the same. 2 bartenders at the pool bar with about 30 people waiting for drinks. 15-20 minute wait time. I also walked away.

[trucruz]

We also were on the same freedom sailing as the original poster. We are also diamond members. I am so glad you posted because we experienced the same terrible bar service. We were completely ignored in the Viking crown lounge in the evening. After three evenings of this treatment we never went back. I went to the sky bar for a drink and stood waiting my turn. It took awhile and then a young women in a bikini stepped up long after I had been waiting and the bar tender immediately asked her what she wanted. I didn't let that one go and finally got my drink.

I will say we had two of the best dining room servers on the third floor. Ronnie and Donavan did an excellent job. The main show entertainment was very good as was the ice skating show.

I wish future cruisers better luck than we had in getting a drink.

[Retired LEO]

Ugh, I hope RCCL is reading these threads. These are posts by RCCL fans, not pax with unreasonable expectations. If you remember a cruise as lots of fun, you are more tempted to talk it up to friends and book again. If it's simply better than a week at work..............

 

There is definately a pattern forming here.

[debbyrich]

I hope this is not the case ! I am sailing on my favorite ship in October, I hope she hasn't changed!

I just got off Liberty on May 16, a ten night and also found the same type things you stated going on there!

I thought it was Liberty!

My hubs and I are Diamond plus...sorry to say is this is becoming the new standard, we don't care for it....we will be cruising on other lines after we finish out our four we have currently booked.

[peteukmcr]

Just returned from the enchantment Friday I had the pp and bar service was exceptional. 5-6 bartenders at the oasis bar on sea days beer carts rolling around at the pool. Servers bringing drinks to the people in the overly crowded pool.

Wow what a difference a few days make. It was the Oasis bar and Pool Bar I walked away from specifically. The Oasis bar only had 2 staff and the pool bar 3 at most including an officer.

 

The Spotlight Lounge was closed most of the time and the Schooner Bar did not have the wines on the limited menu.

[trev71]

With the beverage packages being pushed heavily there's no longer a need for roving servers selling their product. This isn't just on the Freedom.

 

 

When you say this, It was not true for the Adventure last week and I had no problem finding a server to order a drink and no I never had the drink package either. I did notice the prices of drinks have skyrocketed . They did have some drinks from the 8$ menu which good and reasonably priced

[legaljen1969]

As to the lack of drink menus, the bartenders will still make you any drink you want. Just because it is not on a "menu" does not mean you cannot have it. Sort of like that favorite restaurant in your hometown. You find a bartender who will make it for you and frequent his/her bar with a smile on your face and a little extra cash in hand. That said, it really does not even take a special favor to get what you want. Just ask for it. They will make it. I love Amaretto Sours. They are not on any menu on the ship, but I had one in almost every bar I stepped into. Same for Bushwackers. Not on the menu, but they will make them. I did discover some new drinks on various menus and tried them.

 

I will say that we found the bartenders in the Bull & Bear Pub to be quite friendly. The crew in the Schooner bar was quite friendly too. There was one Ukranian fellow named Valeri who was very nice. He always had a smile on his face and was very willing to be of service.

[legaljen1969]

Ronnie and Donavan did an excellent job.

 

Donavan is one of RCCL's gems. He is one of the most amazing servers they have. He is so good with the little ones in the dining room. He was one of our servers on the Mariner back in 2008. We were on FOS on April 26-May 3. He was a server at the table next to us. They had several small children. He kept them entertained while still providing the utmost attention to his other tables as well.

 

We went up to speak to him and told him we remembered him from Mariner. He spoke to us every night. When we went to breakfast, we always made sure to ask to sit in whatever section he was handling. He always gets a WOW from us.

[legaljen1969]

Sad, why would you be disappointed, your cruise has not happened yet? Go and make up your own mind. Freedom carries over 200,000 PAX a year, needless to say something is working. You don't need to do a thing other than have a good time

 

Please do not go onto the ship with the idea that everything is going to go wrong, and you will be disappointed. I can assure you that if you board with that attitude, you may find yourself finding fault with many things.

 

That said, take the conversation and just be aware that you may have to wait an extra moment or two for a drink. Be aware that the staff may be stretched a little thin, but they still provide great service. Just try to have some patience for the things that don't go perfectly. It's still a cruise. It's still better than being at work.

 

Don't let folks ruin your vacation. I met a woman in the elevator on the second day of our cruise who complained that nothing had gone right for the "entire cruise." I said "We are only on the second day of the cruise." It was the first sea day. We hadn't even done anything yet. She said "I am trapped on this boat for a week and it is a week of my life I won't get back." I told her I was sorry to hear that she was not having the time of her life so far, but I bet it would get better.

 

She stepped off on the 11th floor going to the Windjammer. I told her to embrace her sense of adventure as we had a week to relax and unwind. I ended up sitting down with her to have lunch. I am one to try different things, and find little things that make me happy. She started to get antsy because it took the roving server about three minutes to come back with a lemonade and I asked her where she was in a hurry to go. " The server came back with the lemonade and a few desserts. He apologized profusely and said that someone had knocked over all the lemonade just as he got there and he had to go to another station to get some.

 

By the end of the week, she was having a great time and said she didn't want to get off the ship. Maybe she posted a review with the cruise from he**. Who knows. But she changed her attitude and realized she didn't have to clean anything, or do anything but relax. It certainly changed her mindset.

[voyager70]

When you say this, It was not true for the Adventure last week and I had no problem finding a server to order a drink and no I never had the drink package either. I did notice the prices of drinks have skyrocketed . They did have some drinks from the 8$ menu which good and reasonably priced

 

I was on Adventure last month and totally agree with this. Excellent bar service, especially around the pool deck. Shame about the drink prices. Fortunately the DL, CL, vouchers & carry on wine help minimize that a bit ;)

[pcur]

I was on the Vision last summer for a b2b, right around the time they introduced the 3 drink coupons, and there were a LOT of complaints about bar service. I was on the Jewel and Adventure last December, and on the Allure last month.

 

I never had a problem with the drink servers or bartenders on any of these ships, but the first time in any bar I made sure to tell them to bring me the receipt when I used my drink coupons because I wanted to add a tip, or I gave them my card and a dollar bill with my D+ order.

 

I know the gratuities are included in the drink packages, and I think they are also with the nightly drink coupons. But, to pay out an additonal $20 per person or so over a week's time is no big deal, IMO. The bar servers were incredible to us on all these cruises.

[WhenIsLobsterNight]

These are just some of my thoughts and opinions and yours might differ. We just got home last night from the May 10th - 17th Western cruise on Freedom. Freedom has always been our favorite RCCL ship and holds a lot of wonderful, lifelong memories for us.

 

First the new cruise terminal is wonderful. From curbside to being handed a glass of champagne (Mother's Day and only for the women guests) took a total of 30 minutes. It's always nice to step back onto a ship that you are familiar with.

 

There were LOTS of children on this sailing. I was surprised as I thought they would still be in school. I remember in the past having lots of bar servers trying to sell you drinks at the pool and outside the Windjammer. None were to be seen. On sea days there were only one or two walking the decks asking people if they wanted bar service. We made our way to the Sky Bar for our first official "we are on vacation" drink. There was only one bartender and he was so painfully slow, uninterested in being there and non-friendly. You certainly didn't get the "lets get this party started" vibe.

 

Uninterested, slow and non-friendly is how I would say most of the bartenders were. I get a sense that the drink packages are cutting into the bartenders serving the drinks because I rarely saw anyone handing them cash money like we always do and have seen a lot of guests do in the past. My husband only drinks Black Russians. Last cruise this drink including gratuity was under $7, this cruise with the added gratuity and price increase was almost $13. We bought four drinks the entire cruise and used the Diamond Coupons in the evening, the Diamond Lounge, my wine I brought on board and some rum runners.

 

The friendly, outgoing vibe across the ship seems to have disappeared. The crew members don't go out of their way to say hi and when you go to ask anyone anything it seems to be a bother for them to assist you.

 

We have never had a bad cruise but this certainly was not a favorite. We will most likely stick to Celebrity when their ships are in the caribbean and for our other cruises we are going to investigate other cruise lines. I would rate this cruise a 5 out of 10.

 

Disembarking the ship was fast but once in the terminal it took 40 minutes to get through immigration.

 

Please consider emailing your comments to the CEO. Lets face it, they monitor these boards minimally and probably are pretty numb to the complaining. Until management hears directly that long time cruisers such as yourself are heading elsewhere they might not get the message. RCCL is a business and is fighting to make money for their shareholders as they should be. However, their nickle and diming, under staffing, poor customer service and overall decline in the cruise experience provided to guests will eventually lead to their core base leaving them for good. Lets face it, we are all paying more these days and receiving much less. We sail in 12 days and it will also be our last RCCL cruise. We are expecting to have a great time, but are not loyal to any cruise line and will go back to enjoying other lines in the years to come.

[coldflame]

We're going on Freedom on Jun 7. This is our first Royal cruise. I picked Freedom because I read so many saying that she is their favorite ship. We also got the drink package so we don't have to worry about a bill at the end of the cruise. I have read many of these threads about bartenders and drink packages. My question is, will we be disappointed? Not just with bartenders but it seems like other workers are unhappy, too. This is our first cruise since 2012 and we are really looking forward to it. We are used to having great service with happy people. Is there anything we can do to make sure this happens? We are not picky and fairly low key. We don't need a lot to make us happy. But if we feel that we are a bother, that won't be much fun.

 

I have not cruised on FotS, but, fwiw, repeat cruisers (myself included with other lines), become a bit ... jaded. We have a fantastic cruise or two about any of these marvelous vessels and we expect that same level of excitement and quality to be present on every cruise and when it isn't, we become quickly disappointed and begin to see our experience somewhat negatively (the old notion that high expectations -> high disappointment).

 

All this to say: if this will be your first cruise aboard FotS or any top-brass ship, for that matter, I can almost guarantee you, you and your family will have a ball. Don't let the slightly negative or nit-picky reviews affect your trip.

[Koolaid33]

I was wonder how the bar service was in the shows?

[seatraveler1]

We've been on Freedom twice now and it will be the last, it's an awful ship starting at the top with the Captain and officers. It's no surprise that they received an almost failing grade with the health inspection, the worst in the fleet.

 

Our impression is that the crew lives in fear from the ship officers and their hard line or mismanagement approach I should say.

[spammie]

I sent an email to Mr. Bayley last night. I'll let you know if I get a response. :)

[seatraveler1]

I sent an email to Mr. Bayley last night. I'll let you know if I get a response. :)

 

Good, between the letter and surveys, they should definitely know how that ship is run, awfully!

[viperrtblck]

*following this thread to see how it goes with the email to bailey*

 

well this sucks, I've been on freedom a few times before and had no complaints. as far as the ship itself goes, sad to see this decline as i'll be sailing end of aug. I kinda figured the service and whatnot would decline with the alcohol packages as the company has our money at that point, they're gaining nothing with getting us drinks after that point. that decline is fleetwide it seems based on what I'm reading. hopefully freedom can get back on track. what was that about health inspections I read, freedom was the worst in RCL fleet?! I find it hard to have a bad cruise, but anything is possible; just try to have an open mindset and enjoy it.

[Lisacruzzes]

We too were on the same cruise and also D+ members. I have to concur with OP on everything stated. An earlier poster said "seeing a pattern here"... I completely agree - seems like MTD and Room Steward service has been and continues to be excellent. It appears that the beverage packages have caused bar service - especially at the pools to decline severely! I did see some servers walking around the pool, but rarely servicing anyone. Typically saw no more than 2 bartenders at the pool bars and they were swamped! Thank goodness Freedom has the soda machines or I would have been thirsty a great deal of the time! RCCL really needs to address this issue immediately!

 

On a positive note, LOVE the new terminal - Express Disembarkation was wonderful thanks to the ramps - no more escalators or elevators. Bravo!!