Disheartened.........

[2BACRUISER]

Thank you for all your input. After visiting TA for a chat and brochure and jocaps's comment we have decided to go on P&O Oceana Croatia & Venice in May. I am super excited and DH has the philosophy it'll be a new and different kind of holiday. Once again many thanks x

[leaveitallbehind]

55 minutes ago, calliopecruiser said:

 

Yeah, really is.......they make far more money from first time cruisers than from repeat customers.  They'd rather fill their ships with new customers if they can.  Of course, they don't tell cruisers that because a) they don't want people to feel disposable and give them bad reviews and b) because they still need to fill their ships......but truthfully, new cruisers spend way more than repeat cruisers.  (New cruisers are more likely to splurge on extra-cost food and drinks, more likely to buy high-priced drinks packages, more likely to take excursions, more likely to buy photos and souvenirs, etc.)

 

While first time cruisers may spend more on miscellaneous extras and excursions than repeaters, it is completely incorrect for you to assert that the cruise lines do not care about repeat cruisers.  As with any business, loyal repeat customers provide far more ongoing and consistent revenue spend than one timers who may jump from cruise line to cruise line.  That is just a basic business tenant.  And the cruise lines compete vigorously for repeat business - let's just say I can say that to be true from direct knowledge.  Why do you think they all offer loyalty programs for their repeat customers?

 

Sorry, but your assumptions about the value of loyal repeat customers are just wrong.

Edited March 2, 2019 by leaveitallbehind

[Toofarfromthesea]

2 hours ago, leaveitallbehind said:

 

While first time cruisers may spend more on miscellaneous extras and excursions than repeaters, it is completely incorrect for you to assert that the cruise lines do not care about repeat cruisers.  As with any business, loyal repeat customers provide far more ongoing and consistent revenue spend than one timers who may jump from cruise line to cruise line.  That is just a basic business tenant.  And the cruise lines compete vigorously for repeat business - let's just say I can say that to be true from direct knowledge.  Why do you think they all offer loyalty programs for their repeat customers?

 

Sorry, but your assumptions about the value of loyal repeat customers are just wrong.

If they really cared about repeat customers they would set up loyalty programs to reward repeat customers.

Oh, wait . . . .

[jocap]

7 hours ago, 2BACRUISER said:

Thank you for all your input. After visiting TA for a chat and brochure and jocaps's comment we have decided to go on P&O Oceana Croatia & Venice in May. I am super excited and DH has the philosophy it'll be a new and different kind of holiday. Once again many thanks x

Oh, the itinerary sounds wonderful- we were on the repositioning last spring, so didn't do that (coach from MAN airport was provided for the first leg, to Southampton, and flight back to MAN).

I've just been and double checked with OH, in case I hadn't mentioned anything which wouldn't suit you, but he still couldn't think of anything other than that dratted lamb( !)… and the fact that we booked so late that the guaranteed cabin was small... ship and crew were good, but we had gales in the Med (March), so some of the ports were chilly... Food was fine, but often the choices are very British, which doesn't suit everyone- but there's always the buffet for a change- and we recommend the Beach House (paid restaurant). There's a tea tray in the cabin, and items are replenished, but you might want to take some Yorkshire tea as well....😄

Have a great cruise!

Jo.

[Heidi13]

19 hours ago, calliopecruiser said:

Many of the mainstream lines do not care about return customers, but luxury lines rely on repeat business, and that generally means better experiences. 

Look at Crystal, Silversea, or Regent.  Viking is a new premium line (among ocean cruising) that is, I believe, adult only. 

While other have voiced disagreement, in our experience we agree with your statement, as our previous mainstream line of 35+ years showed no interest in resolving an issue with a previous cruise, to keep up as customers.

[Mike981]

To the OP glad you got it all figured out.

I've told many people over the years who were concerned about traveling because of reviews, when was the last time someone came home and gushed about how their were no problems on their flight. The majority of people who leave reviews/comments have a complaint(s), or our new travelers.

[SRF]

Another way of looking at it.

 

Cruising SO HORRIBLE that over 23 MILLION people do it every year, and the number is growing every year.  And almost every cruise is full.

 

If it were that bad, this would not be happening.

[angie7911922]

If this helps any - we have never been on a "bad" ship. There are always little things, as with any place that gets used and abused by vacationers. Most ships hide these things very well. Being on a cruise with my family is some of the best vacations we've had - vacations where we truly get to relax and enjoy our time. I wouldn't trade our cruises for anything. We've always had fantastic experiences with the staff, the ships, and the other people on the ships we've been on. 

I truly hope that you will find your cruise extremely pleasant and that the reviews you have been hearing are wrong!!

[KmomChicago]

21 hours ago, SRF said:

Another way of looking at it.

 

Cruising SO HORRIBLE that over 23 MILLION people do it every year, and the number is growing every year.  And almost every cruise is full.

 

If it were that bad, this would not be happening.

 

Better be careful. Them's fightin' words.  You'll have plenty of flames about the low standards of "some people" who would be so offensive as to fill up a significant percentage of the industry, namely those downscale, budget priced horrible ships. Don't you know there are people (superior people) who appreciate the finer things who would not set foot upon such filthy vessels, even if you paid them?  Furthermore, they would like such options to no longer exist as their presence upon the globe is a personal insult.  Even though thousands of people are on such vacations every day.

[calliopecruiser]

2 hours ago, KmomChicago said:

Don't you know there are people (superior people) who appreciate the finer things who would not set foot upon such filthy vessels, even if you paid them? 

Yes, you're right that there's no place for snobbery on these boards.   LOL.  Pot, meet kettle.

[leaveitallbehind]

On 3/2/2019 at 5:50 PM, Heidi13 said:

While other have voiced disagreement, in our experience we agree with your statement, as our previous mainstream line of 35+ years showed no interest in resolving an issue with a previous cruise, to keep up as customers.

That is unfortunate, and their loss.  And I fully realize you are referencing this solely as your opinion based on an experience you encountered, to which you are of course entitled.  But I still don't think it is a fair criticism of your particular line of choice, or the industry as a whole, to suggest that based on your singular experience that repeat customers are not important to them.

 

Perhaps in your situation the response or resolution to your concern did not meet your expectation of what you thought was the right solution for you. We, too, have had an instance where we felt the ultimate resolution fell somewhat short.  But that doesn't mean that repeat business isn't valuable to the cruise line (or any) in question.  It may just mean that there are reasonable limits to what should be done in a given situation, or simply that our perception and their perception of the issue wasn't aligned.

 

But to leverage your (or our) experience to an endorsement of the blanket statement regarding the industry as a whole as indicated by calliopecruiser is a bit of a reach, IMO.  You are using a singular example involving one cruise line to support an indictment of an industry as a whole, which I think is out of perspective.

Edited March 5, 2019 by leaveitallbehind

[Malleykatt]

OP.  We are still newbies at cruising as we are off on number 4 this year. We did the Adriatic last year you will love it. We've sailed once on Crown Princess out of Southampton and Marella Discovery 1&2. Loved them all. Crown is double the size of the Discoveries but service and on board standards had no faults on either line. Get the guide books out and start planning those port visits.

[Heidi13]

2 hours ago, leaveitallbehind said:

That is unfortunate, and their loss.  And I fully realize you are referencing this solely as your opinion based on an experience you encountered, to which you are of course entitled.  But I still don't think it is a fair criticism of your particular line of choice, or the industry as a whole, to suggest that based on your singular experience that repeat customers are not important to them.

 

Perhaps in your situation the response or resolution to your concern did not meet your expectation of what you thought was the right solution for you. We, too, have had an instance where we felt the ultimate resolution fell somewhat short.  But that doesn't mean that repeat business isn't valuable to the cruise line (or any) in question.  It may just mean that there are reasonable limits to what should be done in a given situation, or simply that our perception and their perception of the issue wasn't aligned.

 

But to leverage your (or our) experience to an endorsement of the blanket statement regarding the industry as a whole as indicated by calliopecruiser is a bit of a reach, IMO.  You are using a singular example involving one cruise line to support an indictment of an industry as a whole, which I think is out of perspective.

Yes, I agree that the experience I noted only involves one incident and one company, which is a very small portion of the mainstream cruise industry. However, I do have considerable other experience in the industry, which I didn't mention.

 

While our last cruise, with our line of choice of 35+ years, was the final straw that convinced us it was time to move to a premium/luxury line, we have actually noticed a steady reduction in standards and customer service for many years. Although I didn't expand on my reasons for developing this opinion, I believe my 40 years working in the cruise/marine industry, many family and friends that also work in the cruise industry and cruising as a passenger has provided ample opportunities to observe or be made aware of changes in the industry. While I haven't worked on cruise ships for many years, I remained in the industry, which is a small industry and still know many of the officers.

 

To be technically correct, I hope every company will at least make some effort to retain both staff and customers. In my experience, how a shipping company resolves customer issues is generally consistent with how they treat their employees. Compared to the 1970's, in my experience and that of family and many friends in the industry,  the mainstream lines do not expend the same effort to retain both customers and employees.

 

Determining whether a company makes a reasonable offer is highly subjective, as are restitution or compensation levels. After spending many tens of thousands of dollars on a World Cruise, we were offered $200, which was the agent's max authority. Don't want to discuss specifics, but I believe my expectations were most reasonable.

 

 

[SRF]

20 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

To be technically correct, I hope every company will at least make some effort to retain both staff and customers. In my experience, how a shipping company resolves customer issues is generally consistent with how they treat their employees. Compared to the 1970's, in my experience and that of family and many friends in the industry,  the mainstream lines do not expend the same effort to retain both customers and employees.

 

That is pretty much true in ALL industries.

 

Very few companies are the same place to work that they were then.  The world has changed.

 

In the 70s, people expected to have a lifelong career in a company, and the company expected the employees to be loyal, so they were loyal to them.

 

But things changed.  Markets changed, so the money was not there to foster those types of life long associations.

[EndlessCruise]

On 3/1/2019 at 10:09 PM, calliopecruiser said:

Many of the mainstream lines do not care about return customers

 

 

Quote

"Royal Caribbean is known for courting repeat customers. The company says that as many as 50 percent of the people on a cruise are repeat passengers."

  https://www.cio.com/article/2873553/how-royal-caribbean-personalized-the-customer-experience.html

 
 

Edited March 8, 2019 by EndlessCruise

[Joebucks]

There are a bunch of cruisers that are miserable, busy-bodies, who know nothing better than to spread their misery to others. 

 

Cruising prices are much lower than they have been decades ago. To get there, the product had to evolve. Some of these cruisers believe they shouldn't have lost a thing, but they sure do love the lower prices. Yea, the whole market loves these prices. That's the reason cruising has evolved. Cruising will continue to evolve too. 

 

The best part about cruising is that there are so many options. You want that "classic" cruise? It exists. You want a cheap price? It exists. You want unparalleled luxury? It exists. 

 

Just for the love of god, please stay away from complaining about vacation prices/fees/etc. It is THE most annoying topic in the world. There is no free lunch. Whether something is an additional fee or "included," you generally pay for it all one way or another.