Negative reviews

[chorder]

Hello to everyone,my wife and I are going on our 5th cruise on April 29th on the Voyager of the Seas out of Miami ,We feel very comfortable with RCCI so we have never cruised on another line ,so we can't compare cruise lines ,but we can compare ships .Our 1st cruise was on the granduer in 99 and because it was our 1st it was probably the closest to perfect as any ,We had our 14 yr old son(at the time) with us,we were in an inside cabin and we all loved it.Our latest cruise was on the radiance out of miami this past April We had a balcony room there were 10 adults only in our group and we loved it.The thing is if I had taken a lot of these posts to heart i would have been on my guard from the first. No vacation is perfect especially a cruise ,not every meal is 5 star ,not every crew member is at there best every minute of the day ,I know I'm not, people spill things on carpets and furniture,We went on the Granduer out of New Orleans in 2003 the ship looked a little used but it was still beautiful and we had a great time still .I gues all I am saying is unless there is a major meltdown then a slow embarkation ,a rude crew member(though I have never met one)a less than even a 3 star meal (that I also have never had ,or had to cook or clean up either)a less than perfectly clean stateroom or public room(does the Ritz Carlton have perfect rooms? well yeah they probably do. but you know what I mean)Will never ruin my cruise. So all you folks trying to get a handle on what ship or cruise line to go on I can guarantee a great vacation on RCCI even though it probably won't be perfect. thanks Bill

[cruiser_carol]

Hello chorder.....I couldn't agree with you more. There are ocassions when it is legitimate, and of importance, to warn a potential passenger of a serious problem on a specific ship. However, these instances are few and far between. The majority of the complaints heard on these boards are very trivial in nature and most issues they raise.. can be corrected easily..or avoided altogether. Some complaints are legitimate..and of concern..others only exist in the eyes of the Beholder.

 

Queueing for Food comes up a lot. Why? I never had that problem on our cruise.... nor of waiting for a table.... or being forced to share..and the Ship was Full to Capacity. We simply staggered the times we ate. choosing to avoid the busiest times. Same applies for boarding the ship (if you are able to arrange your arrival time) and for going ashore at ports. Unless you are scheduled to join a tour..just relax for a half hour or so...have a late breakfast and let the others get off first.

 

As you say...Cruises are the most wonderful experience. They offer you so much Value for your money.... All day Food, quality accommodation, entertainment around the clock, and wonderful ports of call. Just think about the Thousands of passengers boarding each and every cruise. All the effort the crew have to go thru... week after week keeping everyone happy...and the work never ends. I think it is a Fantastic job they do.. and considering How Much Is Involved... It Really is A Miracle That Things Run As Smoothly As They Do!!.... and Generally With A Smile! Carol

[Patfan]

I can't agree more! We go with the flow and make the best of every situation. A bad day at sea is still a great day.:)

[CRUZ-AHOLIC]

Agreed! The "cruise experience" is an awesome, value-for-your-dollar vacation. Ever since my first cruise on Sovereign cruising is now my vacation of choice.

 

Sure, there's always situations where things are less than picture perfect, but IMO a little pre-planning and realistic expectations can go a long way to make a person's vacation the best possible.

 

Of course, there are always those people who can never be pleased...for those types I am truly sorry for them...a life without joy, contentment, and happiness is a truly sad one.

 

Cindy

[Alexis]

You are my kind of cruiser. :D

My husband and I have sailed on 21 cruises. We have been on 5 different cruise lines and many of their ships. All of them were fabulous to us and we loved each and every one of them for different reasons. We have been through the worst and the unexpected, many times over, but still got off all of them happy to have been on a cruise and ready to book the next one.

We found RCCL to be the one we are the most comfortable with and have stayed with them our last 7 cruises in a row, with two more booked for 2006.

It is nice to read how happy someone is just being able to cruise and seeing the good in each one and not just dwelling on the little things that can go wrong.

Thank you for this wonderful post. ;)

[hstrybuf]

I haven't had a perfect cruise yet, but I didn't expect perfection. The Navigator did come close. Did I enjoy those cruises? Yes! Every one! Although I've never experienced any major problems, neither have I found the little things really worth complaining about.

 

I take most reviews with a grain of salt, especially if they are very one sided toward the positive or negative, but more so if they are negative. They are for information only and because they are, I like to see a well balanced review. Granted some people are going to have such a great time that there won't be much if anything to report in the negative. Others are going to see everything, big or small, as contributing to a ruined cruise. No matter how a review is presented, it would have to be pretty darned bad and believeable to sway me from trying a specific ship or line.

 

Chorder, I love your attitude and I hope you have as much fun on your next cruise as you have in the past! :)

[packedandready]

Here, here:) We are booked on the Rhapsody for the third time:D . Galveston in only about 45 minutes from home which is great. When we leave our drive way to start our cruise we announce "our vacation starts now......noone and nothing is going to get to us, we're going to have a great time". So far it's worked!!

[posmanti]

I think it's all about expectations. If you go on the cruise with certain preconceived pictures of what it will be like, and it doesn't meet your fantasy -- you are likely to be unhappy afterwards.

 

I try hard, especially after a few cruises of varying excellence, to stay open minded and roll with whatever the cruise presents.

[RDeagazio]

I'm amazed at how many people complain about petty things like "We only got towel animals in our cabin on 2 of the 7 nights"... or " A light bulb in the Centrum was blown out and not replaced all week"... WHO CARES?!?!? If these things are the only areas for which you measure a good or bad cruise then that's very sad (IMHO). If you expect perfection, then you're setting yourself up for disappointment-- nothing is perfect, certainly not a large company like the cruise lines that operate 24/7. 365 days a yr and service thousands of people per ship.

 

I can say, after having sailed almost every major cruise line (past and present) and having been on most ships in their fleets, that RCI has the most beautiful ships in the industry-- even more so than the 5 and 6 star lines. They also have the most friendly crew at sea. The service and food are not 5 or 6 star, but then again they don't charge the prices the luxury line do, nor to they claim to be an upscale line. I feel you get a lot for your money with RCI and find them to be consistant in delivering a good experience.

 

OK, I feel better now... aaahhhhhh :-)

[abridalmaven]

I do agree, our worst cruise was still fun. I did not care for the ship and some other things not related to the cruiseline, but I was with friends and not home. That is enough for me!:D

[CRUZ-AHOLIC]

I probably had one of the most legit reasons to complain when I was on Voyager in '03. I was in a Deck 2 window cabin with 3 other people, and because of some malfunction toilets were not working for a good bit of the cruise...in fact they weren't working on the whole deck!!! Had to go to deck 3 to use the bathroom. However, my Voyager review that I posted (8 separate threads, hours of time spent on it, lost in the conversion) still reflected a very happy cruise experience. I would sail on Voyager again in a heartbeat!

 

If something really negative happens, you can choose to harp on it and be a 'downer', or you can laugh at it and move on. I for one chose to move on :-)

 

Cindy

[Happy ks]

I like all the reviews, good and bad. Sometimes if you are warned ahead of time of a negative situation, it turns out not so bad at all once onboard. I have to admit, sometimes I read the negative threads here to get a bit of a chuckle.

 

I think the funniest ones I read are when a person will be harping on something that happened at embarkation. I tend to let things go after the experience is over and fortunately, nothing has ever been so bad as to report it here. Why a person will dwell on the negative is beyond me. Let it go, so you can enjoy the present and the future. If you hang onto bad feelings, you won't be ready, or paying attention, to the good things in life!

[cryscruiser]

I know what you mean about reading the reviews. I am getting ready to take my first RCCL cruise on Dec 22 out of Port Canaveral on the Sovereign. It's scary to read the reviews. But, I am not an unexperienced cruiser, so I know how to do it and enjoy it. It's a working trip and I will be traveling alone over Christmas, but I plan on catching up with some reading, eat some food, that I didn't have to cook myself, and have someone mix a cocktail, that I can enjoy while people watching. I'm going to make the best of it. Happy Holidays to everyone.

[kruisecat]

I'm so glad that you started this thread! I am usually amazed at the nit pickiness of people in their reviews. I've only been on 2 cruises (3rd planned for Feb!) but I don't think on either of them that I even looked down at the carpet, let alone was able to note where the stains were. :D

 

And as for food, I guess that I have a lower set of expectations than others. I'm THRILLED that someone takes my order, prepares 5 courses and then cleans up after it and if for some reason something isn't to my liking I either add a little seasoning or ask for something else. Either way I make it work for me. :p

 

I do wonder sometimes if it is because people are cruising a lot that it might skew their perceptions. Unfortunately we only get to cruise about every other year so I am in no way going to spend my time looking for things to complain about!!

[Yosef42]

I'd have to agree with the general tone of this thread, but with a caveat: a lot (not all) of the "nit picky" complaints I see in reviews are in the context of a generally positive review. Almost as if the reviewer were trying to say "I enjoyed myself thoroughly, but just to prove that I'm not a gushing 4-year-old who has no basis for judgment of quality, I'll put in something that I didn't like just so you know that the positive parts of my review weren't completely through rose-colored glasses."

 

After my first cruise, which I enjoyed every minute of, my TA asked me if there was anything about the trip I didn't like. There were some things, though it actually took me about a day to even think of what they were. That doesn't mean I think any less of the trip, or of RCCL, it just points out where things can be improved (or, in my TA's case, how to choose an even better trip for us next time). But if my next cruise is exactly the same as the first one, I'll still be just as happy.

 

-Y

[CrabbyHarper]

It absolutely amazes me that people complain about the weather, especially about missed ports due to weather. Captains may be powerful individuals to their crews, but they certainly are not reponsible for bad weather!

 

I'd much rather sail with a cautious captain who omits ports or cuts port time short because of impending bad weather than one who takes risks!

 

If folks would read the cruise contract and use their noodles, they'd have more realistic expectations when boarding a cruise ship.

 

I' ve never been on a perfect cruise - but on 13 darn good ones.

 

:p

[racephoto]

Well, I have some negative things to say about RC's disembarkation procedures/seapass account problems.....when I get around to writing a review I will still include those comments but I will also be able to better articulate all the good things about the cruise. Had I written it while I was spending an extra 4 hours in the airport after spending 2 hours in line at the pursers desk (in addition to an hour the night before) that's all I would have talked about. I have never seen so many problems with accounts on any cruise I've been on, if the lines were anything to judge by, half the ship had something screwed up. Mine was for almost $400 or I would have just left and fought it later. What's nit-picky to one person is unimportant to others.....I can always read reviews and know what would bother me and what wouldn't so I apppreciate when people list both positive and negative.

[newmexicoNita]

Of course there will always be room for improvement and yes, we need to hear both sides but I honestly feel 90% of the negatives relate to things most of us wouldn't even worry about or a cruise has 2 or 3 things go wrong at the beginning and the passenger starts looking for other things. We took a cruise about 5 years ago, it happened to be RCI, but could have been any line: first we had an inside cabin for the first and only time, this ship had exceptionally small cabins, our table mates left a lot to be desired, the weather sucked, we missed 1 port because of weather and another was so rainy and yucky that those who did excursions were griping like crazy and the icing on the cake, I was supposed to be on a fam cruise (free that week) but the line I was going on went belly up so instead of free I was paying for our week away from home and work. One more thing, prior to the cruise we spent 3 days in Miami in the rain. Needless to say we didn't have the best vacation and caught ourselves picking everything apart. Now, years later I realize any one of these things would have seemed minor, put together it made for a bad week. Reading negative as well as positive reviews on any cruise can be helpful, but don't put too much into them. NMNita

[Linda/Ohio]

I tend to look for trends in the reviews..if several people mention a particular issue--then perhaps I need to be aware. Otherwise everyone seems to have an individual experience-as evidenced by the recent Voyager reviews. We had a delightful time, a wonderful cabin, a good mattress, good food etc. Another poster had otherwise. Both are a reality to the cruisers who experienced it.

 

Did we have any issues--sure-we had some late flushing toilets and our bathroom light burned out. It was a slight inconvenience to have a maintenance man in our cabin 2X--did it ruin our trip--not on your life.

[chorder]

Yes Racephoto I agree that is a serious legit complaint ,but if everything was taken care of It still would not ruin my whole trip.My wife and son went to Disney World one year .We went to Alamo rental car I went inside and stood in line for almost 3 hours while my wife and son waited outside wondering what happened to me.But,to this day that was one of the best vacations we ever had together.

[1corona4u]

And then there's the other side of this. Spending a few hours to write a review, and hundreds of people read it, and one person comments on it, or thanks you for the effort. I know I won't waste my time again in the future with a review.:(

[Leafpeeper]

I appreciate people sharing their reviews--good and bad. It sometimes can make the difference in choosing between one ship and another. I am sure some people are reconsidering rebooking other cruises because they don't like the idea of tenders in Cozumel or just found out Cozumel is no longer on the itinerary.

 

We recently sailed on Jewel of the Seas and read a review by someone complaining about having to walk thru the smoke filled Schooner Bar to get to Chops, Portofinos, and the Safari Lounge. The review cracked me up because it was stating the same problems I had with smoke on Jewel. It is a gorgeous ship that simply has a design error that could easily be corrected by designating another bar away from the restaurants as a smoking bar. Perhaps if enough people complain, RCCL will consider changes. If not, then people with asthma problems have the option of another ship.

 

Some posters are humorous and others are angry. I guess we can all fast forward if we don't enjoy the review.

[TomCat32174]

Chorder: My wife and family will be sailing along with you on the Voyager in APril.... If she is anything leike her sister ships, then it will be a great vacation.

[hstrybuf]

And then there's the other side of this. Spending a few hours to write a review, and hundreds of people read it, and one person comments on it, or thanks you for the effort. I know I won't waste my time again in the future with a review.:(

 

Unfortunately, not everyone who reads a review is going to make a comment or thank the poster. Look at it this way, if you took the time to write something that hundreds of people took the time to read, then you've accomplished something. If no one read it, then you would have been wasting your time. ;)

[chorder]

Chorder: My wife and family will be sailing along with you on the Voyager in APril.... If she is anything leike her sister ships, then it will be a great vacation.

Hey Tomcat hope we meet on 4-29-06 just one thing though I'M a diehard REDSOX fan L.O.L