No More RC for us: Liberty Review

[Ocean Boy]

The Liberty, a beautiful ship, is a very family orientated and child friendly. Just sorry that you will miss all the good things RC has to offer with all their new innovative ships.

 

Happy cruising,

 

Carla

 

If you read Gambee's latest review about his cruise on NCL you will find that innovation is not limited to RCI.

[PH8]

I have cruised RCCL a lot and the Liberty is my least favorite ship in the fleet.

[loubetti]

The reality is for Lerin and all is: You don't know until you try, and often ("often times" for some), a cruise line, hotel, restaurant, etc. only get one chance to get it right, especially if the price is not inexpensive, or even if it is inexpensive. "You get what you pay for should only mean so much". I can go to Denny's and have a very nice meal with good service for a cheap price. However, when I pay six times as much, the stakes are much higher.

 

For Lerin, if you need a family ship and a floating amusement park and shopping mall, there are not many choices, and all are mid/mass market, such as RCI, Carnival and NCL. Celebrity, Princess, HAL and Cunard will not work for you, not to mention the likes of Crystal, Seabourn, etc.

 

Have you looked at MSC? I have, and they seem to be looking better and better all the time. Just don't cruise them out of Europe; USA only.

 

Best wishes, Lerin, with your future cruises. RCI had a chance, and you gave it to them.

[TC1957]

Several posts hint at the same thing you just did. So far it hasn't happened. Maybe that goes to show that when people have reasonable complaints they get reasonable responses in return.

 

Fortunately for Lerin...her definition of "reasonable" is the same as the one used by the cheerleaders.

 

Sorry...if you're gonna lob a slow one right down the middle... :D

[serialcruiser48]

I sailed the Liberty for two weeks in Feb and a week just last week. In two weeks I'll be back on the Liberty for another and several more before the end of the year. Also , I'm top tier with every major cruise line and can only say good luck finding a better cruise line that offers more to its loyal cruisers.

[TC1957]

I sailed the Liberty for two weeks in Feb and a week just last week. In two weeks I'll be back on the Liberty for another and several more before the end of the year. Also , I'm top tier with every major cruise line and can only say good luck finding a better cruise line that offers more to its loyal cruisers.

 

And this relates to the OP's situation how?

 

I am going to use one of the tactics many of the "cheerleaders" use and point to your signature. Either is it woefully outdated, you do not consider RCI a major cruise line or you are not "...top tier with every major cruise line..." since you are just Diamond+, Pinnacle would be "top tier".

 

Besides, most companies treat the people who spend thousands of dollars a year with them well. But every customer deserves to be treated kindly, professionally and should get the goods/service that they pay for and that is advertised.

[foxgoodrich]

We cruised Liberty May 8-15, so we just returned home. This was our first cruise ever on Liberty, though we've cruised Freedom several times. We've cruised many times out of Galveston (we can drive!) and enjoyed all the ships, but we definitely talked about Liberty after we disembarked - it just seems like something is "off" on Liberty. I can't exactly define what's "off" but I could identify with some of the issues Lerin mentioned.

 

On Guest Services - We had no GS issues on this cruise, but I do know what that "the offices in Miami are closed on the weekend" statement was about. We had an issue several cruises ago with an OBC (purchased pre-cruise with Visa points) that never showed up and we got that same line at the end of the week when GS had no success in getting it applied for us. After talking to the GS manager, we learned that the GS people on the ship can make adjustments/refunds on stuff charged on the ship. If it's done ahead of time (like prepaid gratuities, or in our case, a refundable OBC) that refund has to be done by the mysterious Revenue Department in Miami. I don't see why the erroneous daily grat charges could not have been removed for Lerin though! That should have been easy to do at GS on the ship.

 

On the MDR - We thought the MDR service seemed awkward and took longer than it should have on most nights. By our observation, this seemed to be due to the flow of food coming out of the galley. Also some of the food was definitely ho-hum, and some was just not very good. The two times we ordered pork entrees, they were really pretty bad. (overdone, dry, and TOUGH!) One of my fave desserts, the Grand Marnier Souffle, was a pretty little souffle with no flavor, and it was very eggy - like maybe they forgot the Grand Marnier! It was mostly little things like that, but we did think the MDR food was generally not as good on Liberty as it has been on other ships. Our wait team was outstanding, though, and once they found out we love the savory bites, they brought a basket of them to the table each night. They also brought us little cheese plates a few times - I figured out this happened on nights when the starters were slow coming out of the galley. The only specialty we did was Chef's Table, and it was excellent.

 

On the DL - I know Lerin did not comment on this, but I will! It was fairly crowded and the overflow area was used (Olive or Twist) every night. We were always able to find seats in the lounge, though, and loved the bar staff in there. They did (inconsistently) scan sea passes most nights when we ordered drinks. And sometimes even when we didn't get a drink - like once when I went to ask the bartender a question, the officer asked for my card and scanned it even though I wasn't getting a drink at that time. A couple in a GS came over from the SL (they were also D) because they said they could not get martinis in the SL. Huh?

 

And now, here's the NEWS OF THE WEIRD! On May 8, our embarkation day, DH and I attempted to get our traditional sailaway Mojitos (or 2...:p) at THREE different bars. In each case we were told that they were not allowed to make Mojitos in Texas waters since it is illegal to use LIMES in Texas.:eek: What? Huh? There was a limited list of drinks available in Texas waters and Mojitos are not on the list. (This was not about the liquor franchising/distributor thing that limits labels of spirits served in Texas. There was a rum on the list of available spirits, so that wasn't the problem.) Nothing on the limited drink list appealed to us, so we had iced tea from the Windjammer, with lemon wedges. And we had those lemon wedges in our tea glasses out on open decks. Thus, apparently Texas has LIME LAWS but not LEMON LAWS.;) (Result was we saved some buck on the bar bill since we couldn't buy our usual 2 Mojitos apiece on Day 1.)

 

In other NEWS OF THE WEIRD...we noticed a lot of 'stuff' blowing around on decks 11 and 12 on embarkation day. Mostly it was plastic cups and napkins, but also some empty aluminum cans and bottles. We saw a several of gusts of wind just pick 'stuff' up and sail it overboard into the bay. We discovered the reason for this - EVERY trash can/waste receptacle on the open decks was sealed up with plastic and tape, so guests were not allowed to dispose of trash properly.:eek: When we questioned the wisdom of this, we were told it's against Texas law to have trash cans on open decks while in port. So...we conclude that Save the Waves only applies in the other 49 states and Texas doesn't mind 'stuff' floating around in Galveston waters.

 

Thus...Lerin shared the issues with her cruise, and I don't blame her for feeling out of sorts about those problems. I probably would feel the same if this cruise had been my first on RCI. I found that the way a number things are done on Liberty are very different from how things are done on other ships in the fleet. And some of those procedures/protocols, as they were explained or not explained to us, just made no sense to us at all!

Judy

P.S. Carla, I tried to find you in the DL the last two nights but never succeeded! Next time....:)

[Big_G]

Fortunately for Lerin...her definition of "reasonable" is the same as the one used by the cheerleaders.

 

Sorry...if you're gonna lob a slow one right down the middle... :D

 

Cheerleader is also a label overused by those that can't grasp the concept that others may have a differing opinion. The population of posters here on CC who think Royal farts roses is less than minuscule at best. As Ocean Boy pointed out, reasonable complaints receive reasonable responses and I'll add that attitude also goes a long way.

 

In your words, "Sorry...if you're gonna lob a slow one right down the middle." ;)

[TC1957]

Cheerleader is also a label overused by those that can't grasp the concept that others may have a differing opinion. The population of posters here on CC who think Royal farts roses is less than minuscule at best. As Ocean Boy pointed out, reasonable complaints receive reasonable responses and I'll add that attitude also goes a long way.

 

In your words, "Sorry...if you're gonna lob a slow one right down the middle." ;)

 

I can agree with that...and I did set you up, didn't I...you're welcome :p

 

But you know what I mean about cheerleaders. I posted some time ago that short of causing a ship to run into the side of an aircraft carrier, for some RCI can do nothing wrong...and if that did happen, it would probably be the fault of someone on the carrier.

[broberts]

They are open for reservations, but I have found that the accounting department is not open on weekends and have had to wait until Monday to call when we noticed a problem with a booking.

 

I don't doubt that the company refuses to talk to customers about account issues on the weekend. But I seriously doubt that there is no one in operations responsible and able to address account issues. On a typical weekend the company settles tens of thousands accounts. Besides, this is the computer age, why would someone have to be physically present in an office to check an account?

[Pratique]

In each case we were told that they were not allowed to make Mojitos in Texas waters since it is illegal to use LIMES in Texas.:eek: What? Huh?

 

Texas has a citrus quarantine but that would not explain the lemons.:confused:

[foxgoodrich]

Texas has a citrus quarantine but that would not explain the lemons.:confused:

 

What does a citrus quarantine involve? I'm curious because I had a drink with GENEROUS lime wedges in a Texas bar the night before the cruise. So evidently land-based bars can serve limes??? (color me CONFUSED!:confused:)

 

Judy

[Pratique]

What does a citrus quarantine involve? I'm curious because I had a drink with GENEROUS lime wedges in a Texas bar the night before the cruise. So evidently land-based bars can serve limes??? (color me CONFUSED!:confused:)

 

Judy

 

I'm confused too but most quarantines just mean you can't bring produce into or out of the quarantine area. So it might have something to do with where the limes on the ship came from versus where the limes in the bar came from.

[cruiselvr04]

Thanks for the review. As a frequent cruiser with RCL most of your negatives don't surprise me. However I would very upset if I was double charged for gratuities if it took more then one trip to GS to remove them. I don't like problems that involve my money. That gets me upset.

 

Everything else I am more go with the flow. We love the entertainment. Yes the food is just okay in the dining room. We have learned long ago to rarely order room service. While we like the option it is not worth the wait. We think most spa services are not worth the money and hassle. We avoid the windjammer for breakfast because it's always the same old stuff.

 

We will not return to Canival unless we are desperate. For us their cruises are a waste of money. Everyone is different and I like to hear others opinions.

 

We are on Liberty again in 9 days. Whoo who! Can't wait!

 

( And yes some Texas laws seem strange.)

Edited May 20, 2016 by cruiselvr04

[Texasopa]

What does a citrus quarantine involve? I'm curious because I had a drink with GENEROUS lime wedges in a Texas bar the night before the cruise. So evidently land-based bars can serve limes??? (color me CONFUSED!:confused:)

 

Judy

 

Your right, those Limes were in the bar were NOT leaving the state. Texas citrus trees are combating a bacterial disease called Citrus Canker. Texas is at risk of losing ALL of it's citrus trees because of it.

[wolfganghowell]

I remember you mentioning the trash before. Unless that is something "new", we have sailed out of Galveston numerous times and have always used the trash cans by the pool bar while still in port.

 

Correct, limes cannot be transported out of Texas at this time.

[Pratique]

Several posts hint at the same thing you just did. So far it hasn't happened. Maybe that goes to show that when people have reasonable complaints they get reasonable responses in return.

 

Playing devil's advocate I'm not sure all of the complaints are objectively reasonable. The OP said the Compass was wrong about the formal night, but that sounded like an assumption not a fact. The OP also said the Compass said disembarkation was at 8:30 but the bus was leaving at 8:30 and didn't question the Compass that time?

 

All in all it sounds like it can get a little crazy traveling with a large group including kids, which amplifies all of the little things that can and do go wrong. It is hard to take many of the comments to heart since they seem specific to the OP's situation, but for what it's worth it is just another perspective about Liberty that may contribute to a broader picture.

[Big_G]

What does a citrus quarantine involve? I'm curious because I had a drink with GENEROUS lime wedges in a Texas bar the night before the cruise. So evidently land-based bars can serve limes??? (color me CONFUSED!:confused:)

 

Judy

 

This page might help:

 

https://www.texasagriculture.gov/Portals/0/Files/ACP/Citrus/FAQs_for_Citrus_Greening_areas.pdf

[spookwife]

I can agree with that...and I did set you up, didn't I...you're welcome :p

 

But you know what I mean about cheerleaders. I posted some time ago that short of causing a ship to run into the side of an aircraft carrier, for some RCI can do nothing wrong...and if that did happen, it would probably be the fault of someone on the carrier.

 

 

it would be as far as the Navy is concerned.....:rolleyes:

[JosieRhodes]

My age is showing. I can't get over someone not being familiar with the plot of Saturday Night Fever.

 

I too am interested to see why an apparently experienced cruiser is so dissatisfied - most of the reviews have been good. Some of the bad ones in the review section have been sketchy.

 

Thanks, your comment made me smile as was thinking the same thing, reading my way thru this as have Liberty booked next year. Son really wants to see the USS TEXAS while down that way, so seemed good choice for school break.

[JosieRhodes]

Thanks for the review. I appreciate anyone who takes the time to list examples, etc as then it helps me think whether that would bug me or not. We tend to take more non cruise than cruise vacations, but we do like to throw in a couple cruises. For example, now our kids are older, so stuff about kid clubs, etc I now skim vs paying attention too :) like I once did, etc.

 

So thanks again.

 

Karen

[Paul65]

Thanks, your comment made me smile as was thinking the same thing, reading my way thru this as have Liberty booked next year. Son really wants to see the USS TEXAS while down that way, so seemed good choice for school break.

 

Well, I hope one person's issues doesn't worry you too much. We were on Liberty the week that spanned the end of March / beginning of April. It was spring break time, so lots of kids, but we had a great time. We had no problems with the MDR food, either, though we only dined there four of seven nights, because we wanted to try a couple specialty restaurants, and one night, we didn't feel like being tied to our normal dining time, so we went to the Windjammer buffet for dinner, which was very nice.

 

We rarely find a need to visit Guest Services, and the only time we had an issue at all was the first day, because my wife's suitcase never showed up. For some reason it was held, though we didn't get any kind of notification, nor was there any note of why it was held, when we went down to G.S. to report it missing and found that it was there among other bags that were flagged for irons or other things. Her bag wasn't flagged at all, and they just gave it to her to take back to the room with us. This was nearly 10pm, so we were a bit annoyed at not having received any sort of notification that her bag was being held, but just moved on, now that we had it.

 

We did end up with a formal night on a port day, though, so if you see that, don't assume it's a mistake and run the Guest Services to report it.

[cruisinfanatic]

I agree 100% about the Windjammer being better option than the MDR, on our last cruise after the first night in MDR we ate rest our meals in the Windjammer.

So you reviewed the MDR for the week based on one night? At least the OP waited 2 nights until they did that

[Ocean Boy]

Fortunately for Lerin...her definition of "reasonable" is the same as the one used by the cheerleaders.

 

Sorry...if you're gonna lob a slow one right down the middle... :D

 

If you are calling me a cheerleader then I suspect you have not read many of my posts.

[JosieRhodes]

Well, I hope one person's issues doesn't worry you too much. We were on Liberty the week that spanned the end of March / beginning of April. It was spring break time, so lots of kids, but we had a great time. We had no problems with the MDR food, either, though we only dined there four of seven nights, because we wanted to try a couple specialty restaurants, and one night, we didn't feel like being tied to our normal dining time, so we went to the Windjammer buffet for dinner, which was very nice.

 

We rarely find a need to visit Guest Services, and the only time we had an issue at all was the first day, because my wife's suitcase never showed up. For some reason it was held, though we didn't get any kind of notification, nor was there any note of why it was held, when we went down to G.S. to report it missing and found that it was there among other bags that were flagged for irons or other things. Her bag wasn't flagged at all, and they just gave it to her to take back to the room with us. This was nearly 10pm, so we were a bit annoyed at not having received any sort of notification that her bag was being held, but just moved on, now that we had it.

 

We did end up with a formal night on a port day, though, so if you see that, don't assume it's a mistake and run the Guest Services to report it.

 

Thanks, but nah, nothing really worries me and looking forward to the cruise. And what can I say, I do like Saturday Night Fever, and one of my very favorite things is just to play shuffleboard and walk around on the outside promenade deck on the freedom class. I hope that is still there. And, I don't know if it is because I have little to no sense of smell, but I am a very easy grader when it comes to food - and I always tend to enjoy the food enough. but, I have had many conversations over how well I actually taste given this. but rest of family is usually happy enough with food options on RC ships.

 

We mostly do non cruise vacations, and in my youth traveled around Europe just showing up places not even knowing where would find a place to sleep:) and then was lucky to have a job or two that required a lot of travel prior to having kids, so I've always been pretty happy, whether it's a weekend road trip, or something more. I do like to plan ahead more these days, so I do like to read reviews and daydream :o of the next vacation.