Princess screwed our Med Cruise

[ucalegend]

So here's the thing, the "inconvenience and frustration" is based upon what actually happened, not what is claimed to have happened. One poster here has claimed "riots" were taking place several nights and involving a large number of passengers. Another claims "lots of" broken ankles on the ship. If either of these things were true, this would have been all over CNN, Fox, NBC, etc. In fact, if 1000 pax were rioting I'd think the Captain would be required to call in the Coast Guard (or European equivalent) to quell the situation for safety's sake.

 

Given that the things are are nominally testable are overwhelmingly likely to be false, why should we trust the rest of the claims by those two? I have no doubt that the ports were missed, and that there was a gathering at the pursur's desk. I don't doubt that the plate sat unremoved for an extended amount of time. I don't doubt that Princess could have made more announcements stating what they knew at the time, not that it would have changed the missing the ports. The question is: was the impact truly as devastating as claimed?

 

As many of us have pointed out, it wouldn't be too bright for someone to book the most unreliable method (and by far the most expensive per hour in port) to see those ports. It seems much more likely that these people are significantly overstating the true value they would have assigned to those ports if they had been required to do so before the cruise. Revisionist history seems to be the American way these days, but we don't have to accept it with no skepticism or rebuttal.

 

There were riots. People were chanting Captain, moneyback, and various other things. Some people from the Purser's desk walked off the job. All security was called to the purser's desk. In fact, one woman demanded that they call the corportate office which is near LA and they refused her. THe crowd got behind her and finally the employees at the Purser's desk gave in and dialed corporate. The woman told Princess that the conversation was being taped and if we didn't get some kind of resolution the tape would go to CNN. The next morning we have a letter stating that we are getting a $400 onboard credit. I feel for the purser's desk employees because it was wrong to confront them. However, Princess could have handled this a lot better. Just my two cents.

[ucalegend]

I did read the petition. It was a customer service complaint. It didn't demand anything. It was just letting Princess know that the passengers onboard ship felt missing 2 ports and the lack of communication was unacceptable. It was crafted by a lawyer on the boat. He did have over 500 people sign it.

[bdjam]

The woman told Princess that the conversation was being taped and if we didn't get some kind of resolution the tape would go to CNN. The next morning we have a letter stating that we are getting a $400 onboard credit.

I doubt very much that Princess offered you the on board credit because of a supposed demanding phone call. I would think Princess would feel that a threat of a tape going to CNN would be a bit humorous - and it's pretty much an attempt at blackmail coming from the passenger, right? On board credits for missed ports is one way people are compensated for same – just like future cruise credits are standard when a cruise is cancelled or abbreviated.

I did read the petition. It was a customer service complaint. It didn't demand anything. It was just letting Princess know that the passengers onboard ship felt missing 2 ports and the lack of communication was unacceptable. It was crafted by a lawyer on the boat. He did have over 500 people sign it.

Did he offer to represent all 500 for a fee?

[britsbest]

We feel your pain! We will NEVER ever book another cruise with Princess and hope that nobody else does.

 

 

http://www.geocities.com/nocruise4u/

 

 

 

T&J

 

The OP and this guy deserve to cruise together!

[gxchan]

How disappointing your experience was....I can totally relate when I was young and I am guessing you are probably in you mid- late twenties.. I got frustrated all the time...false advertising was all around, I wrote so many letters I grew blue in the face( by the way yours is great) I took a six week tour of Europe that didn't provide what was promised,.....I had rights after all...............

 

then I had children. illnesses, etc. and now I take life less seriously, "stupid" things happen a lot, is it intentional ? we people who are type A personalities think it is, but really most people just react, few think ahead...and many run by the seat of their pants...thats life!...

 

How many people were actully leaders at the pursers desk? Most just follow the lead...........few will write letters.

 

I hope you get the reimpursement you asked for......

 

....but wait tell you have children...they seldom follow through on their commitments and I have yet to go on any vacation, cruise, to any hotel etc. that provided all that was advertised in my 48 years of life, I mean even the local target doesn't have products that they advertise on the first day of the sale, I've just mellowed with age..............

Good Luck...:)

 

Hi Land Lover,

 

I've been on the NCL section of CC because it is the only CL I've been on but was checking out Princess section because I'm looking at a Princess cruise to Panama Canal. Because the Dream, which sailed in Alaska this summer, missed Sitka from June through the end of the season, this debate about missed ports/reimbursement for missed ports/bad-indifferent customer service, etc. has also been debated in the NCL section, complete with full contract quotes. This thread could have been about NCL! But your response was by far the most dead on! There are no guarantees and there are sooo many other more serious issues to deal with in life. Like you, I have mellowed with age and realize a vacation is a time to relax, enjoy and go with the flow! If you can't do it then, when can you?

[Floflegs]

Brithish cruise ships in the med sometimes miss a port due to bad weather. No compensation is given. You're on holiday - enjoy what you get. You could be working!!!

[greatam]

I really think a lot of you are missing the point. IT is NOT about the missed ports.

 

IT IS about lack of information, lack of concern for your guests, and definitely lack of "schmootzing". Princess is ABSOLUTELY horrible in these departments.

 

After our first PRINCESS cruise in 2002, I was definitely disappointed. This is a recap of problems. Swore off another PRINCESS cruise.

 

1. Absolutely horrible room service. We had a party in our suite-I ordered Miller Lite and glasses of ice tea-kept getting Miller Lite, empty glasses and NO tea. After 3 trys, left our party to go to the buffet and get ice tea for our guests. Got a real hassle when I asked for a tray to carry the glasses of tea. Told to call room service. Never did get the ice tea for all guests-just two glasses-all the buffet would let me have.

 

2. Makeup all over the curtains going to the balcony. It appeared to me that someone had been applying makeup and instead of using the sink, used the sheer curtains to wipe off their hands. Never did get the sheers changed. Took them down myself, as I was tired of looking at all the makeup streaks everytime I went onto the balcony. Left them on the desk and they were folded up and place in a drawer. DUH???

 

3. Rug burns all over the carpet (17 to be exact). I know there is not much you can do, but a throw rug, carefully placed, would have alleviated seeing most of them, which were around the table. I asked three times for some type of rug be placed under the table to no avail.

 

4. Nothing special food-very subjective, I know. I am NOT a foodie, but little problems kept cropping up. Asked for extra drawn butter, it never came. Asked for ketchup for my DH's steak ( I know, I know-he has ketchup on EVERYTHING). Never got the ketchup. Waiter NEVER asked if everyone was showing up for dinner-table for 8. He just started taking orders AND serving food when he felt like it. One evening, one couple was eating dessert while the rest of us, who had returned VERY late from a Princess excursion, were served salad. We had called and let the matre de know that we would be at least 45 minutes late for dinner. The solo couple was not told and just figured the rest of us had "done our own thing".

 

All enough "little things" which were NEVER addressed to make me swear off Princess. BUT I wanted to go to the Orient. Princess was the only cruise line doing a big sweep through the Orient. Booked the Sapphire, March 2003. SARS cancelled the cruise. 2004, Princess used the Regal (or maybe Royal) and we did not want to be on a smaller, older ship. Princess rebooked us for the same cruise, reverse itinerary, spring 2005. Aft suite. This was NOT a cheap cruise.

 

Now, we had a problem. Qantas FF first class tickets. No itinerary changes allowed (only date) without 10,000 additional miles per ticket. Did not have 20,000 more Qantas miles and NO WAY to buy them. Tickets were issued to Beijing, return from Bangkok. Ok, we will pay our own air to get from Beijing to Bangkok and reverse to embark and disembark on the cruise. But we had another problem.

 

Two port stops in China, with a stop in Pusan, Korea in between, and flying into Beijing necessitated a TRIPLE entry visa to China. We needed a letter from someone INVITING us to China. We asked Princess for a letter from someone in China-port agent, excursion director, any of their contacts would do. After spending nearly six months contacting Princess, being told the letter was forthcoming, and the cruise rapidly approaching (3 months), I spoke to Princess' visa service again (Zierer) and they informed me that they could not process a triple entry visa. WHAT!!!! For six months, I had been talking to Zierer and they also had been talking to Princess about our problem.

 

I drove back to the consulate in LA (500 mile RT) and verified that as soon as I had the letter, I would be issued my multiple entry visa. One month pre-cruise, with cruise paid in full, Princess informed us that they had NO ONE to issue the letter and we would NOT be allowed on the cruise. We were stunned. No visa, no cruise, and it was paid for. Wanted my money back. Princess KNEW we had this problem for almost 2 years, as they had made arrangements with Qantas to change the dates on our air tickets, and for 6 months, had promised the letter to resolve it. The cruise was oversold AND we had a primo aft cabin. Why can't we just have our money back? NO, NO, NO. We finally had to call our attorney. I really could not afford to loose $15,000.

 

We FINALLY (July 2005) got our money refunded to our credit card, LESS the $1200.00 initial deposit, made in 2002. I am still upset about the deposit. NO MORE PRINCESS CRUISES for this person. Their customer service is truly horrible. And the way my problems were handled is even worse. If at ANY time, they had cared a little, acted like they listened more, addressed any of the problems within a decent time frame or "schmootzed" a little, I may NOT have such a bad taste in my mouth. I can completely empathize with the OP.

[Genessa]

Cheryl... I agree with you completely in that if you want to experience the sights and sounds of Europe, you really need to do a land vacation. If the cities and towns are important, then that's the way to go. However, to spend that time, you really need longer than a week unless you spend it all in one or two cities/towns. Most people don't have a month or even two weeks at a time to travel.

 

To me, the cruise is the ship, and being on the ship is the destination. I do pick cruises for their itinerary but I know that if I miss a port or two, I'll probably have another opportunity. I plan, and hope, to cruise to the South Pacific, Asia and Southern Africa at some time... those are places I'd like to see and visit and which I might not have a chance to see again.

 

 

I haven't had the opportunity, yet, to visit Europe, but I plan to, which is why I've been following this thread. Your viewpoint on cruising is ours. We cruise to cruise first and foremost. We do like to pick different itineraries, however, and if a lot of transportation is involved and we really want to see

a number of land sites (like Alaska), we add on some land time on either end.

When we get seriously into planning the European cruise in 2007 that we want to take, we are definitely adding on 2-3 days prior and probably 2-3 days post, just to take advantage of putting two vacations into one.

 

When we finally take the Australian/New Zealand cruise that we hope to in ?2010, 2012? we'll probably add at least 2 weeks onto the land portion. We could just do the land, but we love cruising.

[jetskier]

I am slightly offended (haha) by the snide remark about "Navy cruises", however. While they are worlds apart from "real cruises" they should count for something! :cool:

 

At least your Navy cruises didnt have water coming over the bow like mine did. :D An LST is not the smoothest ride out there. Nothing like having 200 seasick Marines in bunks stacked 5 high. I felt sorry for the sailors who had to clean up afterwards.

 

For the other poster, we got $200 from Carnival on our cancelled cruise plus a full refund. Of course with the higher fuel charges resulting in higher prices, it pretty much ate that credit up when we rescheduled. NCL only offered a $50 room credit when they changed the Sun from Houston to Miami for Jan 06.

 

For the original poster, it sounded like you got a fair compensation in today's market. I would hate to go through life nitpicking every little thing. Life is too short and you only get ulcers.

Dave

[spongerob]

This was NOT a cheap cruise.

 

Now, we had a problem. Qantas Frequent Flyer first class tickets.

 

So, you are blaming Princess because you wanted to use your FREE tickets that forced you to fly to Beijing instead of where the cruise actually departed, causing a problem with the Chinese officials? Hello, it's not their responsibility when you are making your own flight reservations because you want to save a few bucks. Twice you brag about how expensive aft suites are, but you can't pony up the cost of airfare? Give me a break. Someone has a bad cruise, and everyone who ever had a problem comes out of the woodwork.

 

Sorry you weren't "schmootzed". I hope wherever you've found to go, your behind is being kissed to your satisfaction.

 

To the rest, I'm sorry if my tone causes offense, but this thread is stuck on stupid.

[Pam in CA]

We feel your pain! We will NEVER ever book another cruise with Princess and hope that nobody else does.

Great... more cabins for the rest of us.

[Tulsa Tom]

This is a cruise horror story. Replys to the effect "stuff happens" and Princess is not legally obligated to do this or that beg the question. The message I hear from this post is a lack of communication to passengers and an attitude from the crew of don't bother me with your problems. These are issues which are under the complete control of Princess.The reputation of Princess being on the upper end of mass cruiselines is being not so slowly erased by increasing complaints like this Maybe it's the change in ownrship or the change in times,but you like to think that with cruise you are booking a quality vacation not a room at the YMCA

[1cat4jan]

And I do know it's luck - when one gets the perfect vacation. However, we've had our share of less than stellar vacations.

 

But - AGAIN - attitude is a major part of whether you will let the "s**t happens" part of your vacation "color" the rest of your trip.

 

We took a "free" vacation on NCL (won at the blackjack table) - the "free" offer meant a cruise on one of the oldest ships - to a place we weren't even that interest in going - all the while having to pay port taxes and airfare.

 

We went with the expectation that we were getting a pretty cheap vacation - in a really, really small room - and guess what? We had a great time.

 

I'm not saying we should go on our expensive vacations with no expectations - nor that we shouldn't be upset if we get a less than stellar experience - nor should we put up with it.

 

However, when issues come up - something that can easily be fixed - like dishes on the floor/dirty shower curtain - be pro-active and get it taken care of instead of sitting their fuming.

 

When you get no information from the Captain the first time around - you pretty much start to realize that it "ain't gonna happen." Frustrating - yes. Life threatening - I doubt it.

 

The problem with scheduling your own port activities is that when problems arise - there is a real probability you will lose your money. Most independent tour operators will not "suck it up" for you. So - this is the calculated risk you take in order to save the money. Most times things work out fine - but there is risk in doing your own tours.

 

Now add to that foreign countries that do not operate their borders "with open arms" like the USA - and your risks of problems is now incredibly increased.

 

If you are going to try to do things independently - you have to realize you are only a single person - not a company - you have no "pull" in these countries. It's a fact - you should've known - when you decided to do these things on your own. As is the possibility of missing a port is a fact of cruising.

 

Cruiselines are in the business to make money - they probably don't really give a darn about your missing your independent tours - they have no stake in them. However, cruiselines don't want to miss ports - don't want to have mechanical problems - don't want to make customers angry - jeez.

[1cat4jan]

PEOPLE - life is too short to spend all your time and effort in all this angst and anger. Save it for the really hard times in life.

 

It's really quite simple - if you are unhappy with the goods and services any company provides - WALK.

 

I'm guessing Princess does a pretty decent job the vast majority of the time - otherwise their ships would be empty.

[mikesteg]

 

1. Absolutely horrible room service. We had a party in our suite-I ordered Miller Lite and glasses of ice tea-kept getting Miller Lite, empty glasses and NO tea. After 3 trys, left our party to go to the buffet and get ice tea for our guests. Got a real hassle when I asked for a tray to carry the glasses of tea. Told to call room service. Never did get the ice tea for all guests-just two glasses-all the buffet would let me have.

 

2. Makeup all over the curtains going to the balcony. It appeared to me that someone had been applying makeup and instead of using the sink, used the sheer curtains to wipe off their hands. Never did get the sheers changed. Took them down myself, as I was tired of looking at all the makeup streaks everytime I went onto the balcony. Left them on the desk and they were folded up and place in a drawer. DUH???

 

3. Rug burns all over the carpet (17 to be exact). I know there is not much you can do, but a throw rug, carefully placed, would have alleviated seeing most of them, which were around the table. I asked three times for some type of rug be placed under the table to no avail.

 

4. Nothing special food-very subjective, I know. I am NOT a foodie, but little problems kept cropping up. Asked for extra drawn butter, it never came. Asked for ketchup for my DH's steak ( I know, I know-he has ketchup on EVERYTHING). Never got the ketchup. Waiter NEVER asked if everyone was showing up for dinner-table for 8. He just started taking orders AND serving food when he felt like it. One evening, one couple was eating dessert while the rest of us, who had returned VERY late from a Princess excursion, were served salad. We had called and let the matre de know that we would be at least 45 minutes late for dinner. The solo couple was not told and just figured the rest of us had "done our own thing".

 

 

(1) Did you ask the room service guy to go back and get you a couple pitchers of tea, maybe withholding that $5 tip until he/she did? As far as the buffet: take 6 people and get 12 glasses. Its always fun and team-building to "beat the system". Or, did you try ordering only ice tea one time? If they can't manage it on one trip, causing them to make a second trip is not your fault.

 

(2) Don't want to know what that was all about, but did you actually tell them about the makeup (or was it that evident)? I'm sure they would have taken care of it, or at least removed the curtains, if they understood the complaint.

 

(3) Actually, if it was that bad tihs is something they could fix on a trun around. Recarpeting a cabin shouldn't take more than an hour. Just don't use too much glue! :D

 

(4) How would the waiter know that your group of 6 (?) was together. And why would you not just ask the waiter to come back in 5 mins (after asking the other couple if they would be willing to wait). This is normal customer-waiter interaction.

 

On the second point, are you kidding me??? Did you seriously expect the solo couple to wait for you when you showed up 45 mins late to a scheduled dinner? Please tell me I'm misinterpreting you.

 

If they had been told, the right answer would have been "let's eat". In fact I wouldn't doubt that they had been told, and just didn't want to confront you about it when apparently your group (the entire rest of the table) had no sense of consideration.

 

 

It sounds like we have another communication problem here: you didn't. The ship's personel don't read minds, and it sounds as if you made none of these complaints (except maybe the ice tea at the buffet) on the ship. Did you at least comment on the carpet and curtains using the comment card?

[mikesteg]

The message I hear from this post is a lack of communication to passengers and an attitude from the crew of don't bother me with your problems.

 

I don't think you read the entire post. It is primarily about the missed ports and compensation. But if it is about communication, do you think the $400 pp was not sufficient? Seems to me that $400 is way over the top if the only problem was lack of communication (and it does seem that the ports would have been missed either way...)

 

Maybe those of you who still need to write letter could point out that Princess really just needs one good 'crisis manager' on land to manage all these things from a P.R. perspective. As pointed out, this would be a very easy problem to solve with just one assigned person with moderately good skills (and/or a command of Outlook reminders...)

[mmbrocker]

Why is it, that if someone has a complaint, everyone has to tear it apart. Isn't everyone allowed to voice their own opinions? It just feels like nearly everyone on this board IMMEDIATELY jumps to the defense of the cruise line.

 

Frankly, I have never used princess, and now.. I will never use princess. Too bad they can't make their customers happy.

 

Have you ever heard... one happy customer tells 3 people, one upset customer tells 30? A few hundred dollars to make a consumer happy may have been worth the $$.

[greatam]

So, you are blaming Princess because you wanted to use your FREE tickets that forced you to fly to Beijing instead of where the cruise actually departed, causing a problem with the Chinese officials? Hello, it's not their responsibility when you are making your own flight reservations because you want to save a few bucks. Twice you brag about how expensive aft suites are, but you can't pony up the cost of airfare? Give me a break. Someone has a bad cruise, and everyone who ever had a problem comes out of the woodwork.

 

Sorry you weren't "schmootzed". I hope wherever you've found to go, your behind is being kissed to your satisfaction.

 

To the rest, I'm sorry if my tone causes offense, but this thread is stuck on stupid.

 

I didn't deserve this tirade. The original air tickets were booked to coincide with the original Princess cruise. No one's fault that cruise was cancelled due to SARS. But Princess immediately rebooked us on the alternate cruise, knowing from day one we had the triple entry visa problem. That is the problem. AND they gave us EVERY indication that between their liason dept. and the visa service, that we were OK. I have at least 7 emails and 2 letters verifying this fact. We were more than willing to pay for the air from Beijing to Bangkok, RT, which by the way, was almost as expensive as air from LAX to Bangkok.

 

The tickets certainly weren't FREE. My DH made 17 business trips from LA to Austrailia in the space of 13 months at a total cost of over $50,000. Why wouldn't we want to use what he rightfully earned the hard way?

[bdjam]

I really think a lot of you are missing the point. IT is NOT about the missed ports.

 

IT IS about lack of information, lack of concern for your guests, and definitely lack of "schmootzing". Princess is ABSOLUTELY horrible in these departments.

I’ll have to agree with ‘rob’s assessment of this post. And just to note, Princess is actually quite good at taking care of issues – they’ve done major good work when cruises have had to be cancelled and/or abbreviated – getting many people back home at their expense as quickly and efficiently as possible. But the two things to remember are – first, the cruise line has to know about a problem – rather than taking curtains down, maybe mention they are dirty – and second, the expected compensation/reward/replacement/ must be reasonable.

I have a difficult time understanding why people with a long list of complaints continue to book Princess - given the angst these bad trips cause, any uniqueness in itinerary must be out weighed.

[greatam]

(1) Did you ask the room service guy to go back and get you a couple pitchers of tea, maybe withholding that $5 tip until he/she did? As far as the buffet: take 6 people and get 12 glasses. Its always fun and team-building to "beat the system". Or, did you try ordering only ice tea one time? If they can't manage it on one trip, causing them to make a second trip is not your fault.

 

(2) Don't want to know what that was all about, but did you actually tell them about the makeup (or was it that evident)? I'm sure they would have taken care of it, or at least removed the curtains, if they understood the complaint.

 

(3) Actually, if it was that bad tihs is something they could fix on a trun around. Recarpeting a cabin shouldn't take more than an hour. Just don't use too much glue! :D

 

 

(4) How would the waiter know that your group of 6 (?) was together. And why would you not just ask the waiter to come back in 5 mins (after asking the other couple if they would be willing to wait). This is normal customer-waiter interaction.

 

On the second point, are you kidding me??? Did you seriously expect the solo couple to wait for you when you showed up 45 mins late to a scheduled dinner? Please tell me I'm misinterpreting you.

 

If they had been told, the right answer would have been "let's eat". In fact I wouldn't doubt that they had been told, and just didn't want to confront you about it when apparently your group (the entire rest of the table) had no sense of consideration.

 

 

It sounds like we have another communication problem here: you didn't. The ship's personel don't read minds, and it sounds as if you made none of these complaints (except maybe the ice tea at the buffet) on the ship. Did you at least comment on the carpet and curtains using the comment card?

 

1. ORDERED iced tea, got only Miller Lite and empty glasses. Explained what I wanted, got more empty glasses. Finally, called the head of room service and ordered 6 glasses of iced tea OR a pitcher, whichever was easier. We already had plenty of empty glasses. Must have definitely been a language problem, as I got more glasses, with ICE only.

 

2. The make-up was SO obvious, I though it was streaks of light and shadows when I FIRST walked into the cabin. Walked over and looked at it and right there, asked the steward to either take the curtains down and replace or just take them down. He told me he had to ask the head of housekeeping. Ok, no problem. The following morning, I left a note, pinned to the pillow, asking the curtains be removed. That afternoon, I saw the housekeeper and asked when we could have the curtains removed. Have to ask the head of housekeeping. The third day, I removed them and dumped them on the desk, figuring someone would get the hint. NO, they folded them and put them in the desk drawer. How many times do you have to ask? And I sure didn't feel like standing in a LOOONG line at the purser's desk to get someone in trouble. I was more than capable of removing them myself.

 

3. A small throw rug would have been satisfactory. Yes, it was that bad. And YES, I asked the same housekeeper twice for the rug. My DH, who is NOT picky in the least, said it looked like the carpet in a bar we owned a long time ago.

 

4. We called the dining room, the MINUTE we were returned to the ship. We wanted to let the couple who was not with us know we were going to be very late. Didn't want them waiting for us. They NEVER got the message. They were on another excursion and would have been glad for a small nap, instead of eating by themselves. We were soooo embarrassed. They thought we didn't enjoy their company and everyone moved to another table. We had all just met the first night of the cruise and it was really a co-incidence that 6 out of eight of us ended up on the badly delayed excursion. There was never a mention of the delay to the solo couple. Evidently, the waiter waited about 10 minutes and then served the lone couple. I do NOT fault the waiter. I fault dining room management for not letting ANYONE, including the waiter, know.

 

Yes, I filled out the comment cards. I even took the time to write a note to the Hotel Manager and delivered it in envelope to the purser's desk two days before we disembarked. And I wrote a letter, with pictures of the carpet and curtains, to Princess when I got home. Got a form letter, thanking me for pointing out that "we may not have been as diligent in the housekeeping department as we should have been". Oh, really???

[Cruisin' Chick]

"We will NEVER ever book another cruise with Princess and hope that nobody else does."

 

I haven't read the entire thread but I have read this guy's story and really think he should just forget about cruising. Hope he's not on any of my future cruises, that's for sure. Yes, stuff happens. Ports are missed because of weather. Occasionally food isn't to one's liking. The crew makes mistakes.

 

But I have enjoyed all eight of my cruises. If someone goes wrong I know we can go down to the Pursur's desk and most likely get some action. The one negative about our last cruise was the chaos trying to get a taxi in the rain after the cruise and I wrote to Princess with a suggestion. Maybe they took it seriously, maybe they found it not usable. I don't know. But we've had other stuff happen on vacations (getting a smelly room when we had requested a no-smoking one, finding ourselves in Key West during Spring Break, having rental car companies not have the right kind of car we reserved) and you have to go with the flow.

[jennew]

This is why so many foriegners hate Americans. You sound liike over-indulged, selfish, brats with a ridiculous sense of entitlement.

 

I have four teens and they have been raised to know that sometimes things don't go as planned- ROLL WITH IT....

[bdjam]

Yes, I filled out the comment cards. I even took the time to write a note to the Hotel Manager and delivered it in envelope to the purser's desk two days before we disembarked. And I wrote a letter, with pictures of the carpet and curtains, to Princess when I got home. Got a form letter, thanking me for pointing out that "we may not have been as diligent in the housekeeping department as we should have been". Oh, really???

 

Obviously this is not the Princess standard – otherwise they wouldn’t still be in business when other cruise lines supposedly offer better quality and service. So one has to ask, why – if what has been related is based in fact – would Princess let this type of situation happen? Is Princess totally oblivious?

I don’t think so – otherwise none of us would continue to sail the line. I doubt that I would ever run into these kinds of conditions on a Princess ship, but if I did, I would have done this:

Regarding the curtains – talk to steward. No results? Talk (do not write) to head of housekeeping or Hotel Manager, including bringing them into the room and get documentation of the situation. Don’t pin a note to the pillow that the steward might not be able to understand. No results? Talk to the Passenger Services Director and get documentation of the situation. No results? Send all that documentation and pictures to Princess. We had an issue with a creaky wall in our cabin on Island Princess – we were told that the ship moves and we should expect some noise, but they sent technicians up to our room anyway and fixed the problem within six hours of reporting it – including the replacement of ceiling panels. I can’t understand how a dirty sheer would be overlooked…

Dinner – if you were in traditional, you should be thankful they let you in 45 minutes late. Given that the full dining room needed to be fed, its not surprising that they didn’t have time to deliver a message that you’d be late to your tablemates.

You should have sailed Regal Princess – she’s “old” according to some, but she’s in perfect shape.

[LARGIN]

Guess I have been lucky.. Last cruise on the Coral the lightbulb over the balcony door was out.. Told my steward in the morning and by afternoon there was a knock on my door. Opened the door and a crewman was there with light bulbs, not only for the one that was burnt out but for every other one in the cabin. He told us the room steward told him to replace all of them in case another was ready to blow.. Nice service.. Nice tip after..

[1cat4jan]

Frankly, I have never used princess, and now.. I will never use princess. Too bad they can't make their customers happy.

 

Kinda silly - to base one's choices on a board where a few people voiced complaints while the other 2,000 haven't chimed in yet.

 

Although my Princess cruise was pretty darn good - and my other 9 cruises on 3 other lines - were pretty darn good - (some better some worse) - I would never take the word of a couple of complainers on a message board to make my decision.

 

And the complaints you are basing your decision on?

 

Lets see: dishes on the floor; lousy room service (once); a dirty shower curtain; missing ports (not the lines fault); lack of communciation (subjective about how "lacking" it was); lousy food and service (again, subjective).

 

When you add all these things up - it would sound like a good idea to never cruise Princess - but then...

 

Read the rest of the message boards - about the other lines - and guess what? You'll find the same stuff.

 

Guess you'll never leave your house again.