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Royal Caribbean customer service non existent


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15 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

 And I will point out yet again that the passenger isn't "committing thousands". When I booked my cruise with Carnival last week the deposit was $100 and until final payment date that is all that is committed. Up until then I can cancel and all that I lose is $100. (I also note that we don't book for the ship, we book the itinerary, so not sailing on a particular ship isn't a deal breaker for us at all, we'd gladly sail on another.)

 

It's a minor quibble on the overall scheme of the debate but as you have mentioned it a few times now, when I book the cruise, I have enough money saved to pay it off in it's entirety.  I'll put the deposit $100 down but the rest of the money is earmarked for the cruise and will not be touched except for some dire emergency.  In other words, I won't use it to buy a 65 inch TV or a down payment on a new car. As far as I'm concerned, it's "spent" or "committed" for that one year (or whatever the time frame is) until the cruise is cancelled.

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9 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

It's a minor quibble on the overall scheme of the debate but as you have mentioned it a few times now, when I book the cruise, I have enough money saved to pay it off in it's entirety.  I'll put the deposit $100 down but the rest of the money is earmarked for the cruise and will not be touched except for some dire emergency.  In other words, I won't use it to buy a 65 inch TV or a down payment on a new car. As far as I'm concerned, it's "spent" or "committed" for that one year (or whatever the time frame is) until the cruise is cancelled.

And if your cruise should get cancelled it's still your money within your control. I only mentioned it a few times because you kept making the statement which is a serious overstatement of the issue. How you look at it is fine from a personal point of view, but it's not the reality. If you needed to you could use it for anything you wanted and pay for the cruise another way.

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5 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

And if your cruise should get cancelled it's still your money within your control. I only mentioned it a few times because you kept making the statement which is a serious overstatement of the issue. How you look at it is fine from a personal point of view, but it's not the reality. If you needed to you could use it for anything you wanted and pay for the cruise another way.

 

I earn money, I put it away to pay for a cruise and then I pay for the cruise. I'm not sure what other way I can pay for it. Are you offering to? 😉 

 

But seriously, I see why you'd think I'm "seriously overstating" the willingness to spend thousands of dollars as you need to bolster your view that barely-there customer support is acceptable. I love cruising on Royal and have been treated well. But this seems to be one area they can improve upon and I'm not afraid to point it out. Other cruise lines as well.  By kicking the OP off the ship (figuratively speaking) so they can fill the ship faster and more profitably, Royal has shown it is not going to be loyal to repeat customers. So why expect customers to be Loyal to Royal?

 

The cruise lines are in the customer hospitality business and will respond to market place demands.  If everyone sits passively by, then they have no reason to raise the level of their service.

 

 

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3 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

I earn money, I put it away to pay for a cruise and then I pay for the cruise. I'm not sure what other way I can pay for it. Are you offering to? 😉 

 

But seriously, I see why you'd think I'm "seriously overstating" the willingness to spend thousands of dollars as you need to bolster your view that barely-there customer support is acceptable. I love cruising on Royal and have been treated well. But this seems to be one area they can improve upon and I'm not afraid to point it out. Other cruise lines as well.  By kicking the OP off the ship (figuratively speaking) so they can fill the ship faster and more profitably, Royal has shown it is not going to be loyal to repeat customers. So why expect customers to be Loyal to Royal?

 

The cruise lines are in the customer hospitality business and will respond to market place demands.  If everyone sits passively by, then they have no reason to raise the level of their service.

 

 

That's one of the reasons that I watch after my own wallet and remain loyal to no cruise line. You have "committed" thousands of dollars for the cruise in your mind, but you haven't contractually committed those funds until final payment date and that is my point. When I see "committed" I am thinking contractually committed because that is what matters. When a cruise is cancelled as it was for OP the only thing the cruise line is legally obligated to provide is a full refund of any money deposited, even if it is a non-refundable deposit. Anything offered over and above that is designed to foster goodwill with the customer. The OP was offered several options, not just one, not just two, but three for the following week (as I recall, haven't read the first post in a while). I don't see that as "barely-there customer service." It's their own pickiness that prevented them from accepting one of those offers. That's on them, not the cruise line. Personally if it were me, any of their offers would have been acceptable, even sailing on the Symphony in the boardwalk balcony. Customer goodwill is important, but customers routinely over-estimate how much their goodwill is worth to a company. Saying it's poor customer service under such circumstances is really over-stating things.

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On 3/30/2019 at 10:53 AM, not-enough-cruising said:

That was because Jacksonville was woefully deficient in hotel rooms. This is not the case in Miami. The Symphony is not being used as a floating hotel for the Super Bowl. 

 

Makes sense, the dates don't really work

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20 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

You have "committed" thousands of dollars for the cruise in your mind, but you haven't contractually committed those funds until final payment date and that is my point. When I see "committed" I am thinking contractually committed because that is what matters.

 

Fair enough. I see your point. I won't bring it up again or maybe re-word the phrase to be "willing to commit". Which is probably what I should have done in the first place.

 

20 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

When a cruise is cancelled as it was for OP the only thing the cruise line is legally obligated to provide is a full refund of any money deposited, even if it is a non-refundable deposit. Anything offered over and above that is designed to foster goodwill with the customer. The OP was offered several options, not just one, not just two, but three for the following week (as I recall, haven't read the first post in a while). I don't see that as "barely-there customer service." It's their own pickiness that prevented them from accepting one of those offers

 

The OP wanted to sail on the Symphony, not the older Allure or Oasis. I don't see that as being picky. Probably wanted to enjoy the latest & greatest Royal has to offer. Most people have certain criteria when selecting cruises: Price, time of year, Big ships vs Small ships, certain ports, anything but the Bahama's, etc.  They didn't really say why the alternative dates didn't work for them but I will give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it was due to work/school restrictions.

 

However, they were willing to postpone their trip by en entire year to get what they wanted but Royal refused to price-protect the trip and would charge them $700 more (actually $900 - the $200 OBC).

 

It was Royals "take-it-or-leave-it, we will not work with you" approach to the situation that Royal created as to why I think their customer service....in this instance....is basic & minimal at best.  To me, good customer service is when Royal works with the OP. Not necessarily giving them exactly what they want not matter how unreasonable as other posters have stated, but giving them some kind of compensation. For example: Downgraded to a boardwalk balcony, give them a 3-night dining package. Or paid upgraded to a JS, give them some OBC to take the sting out of the extra price.  Win-win for all.

 

21 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

Customer goodwill is important, but customers routinely over-estimate how much their goodwill is worth to a company. Saying it's poor customer service under such circumstances is really over-stating things.

 

You are correct. As Royal is sailing at full capacity, they have no reason to provide goodwill At least until the next economic downturn.

 

And I don't think I ever said customer service was poor, just minimal at best.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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15 minutes ago, HBE4 said:

 

Fair enough. I see your point. I won't bring it up again or maybe re-word the phrase to be "willing to commit". Which is probably what I should have done in the first place.

 

 

The OP wanted to sail on the Symphony, not the older Allure or Oasis. I don't see that as being picky. Probably wanted to enjoy the latest & greatest Royal has to offer. Most people have certain criteria when selecting cruises: Price, time of year, Big ships vs Small ships, certain ports, anything but the Bahama's, etc.  They didn't really say why the alternative dates didn't work for them but I will give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it was due to work/school restrictions.

 

However, they were willing to postpone their trip by en entire year to get what they wanted but Royal refused to price-protect the trip and would charge them $700 more (actually $900 - the $200 OBC).

 

It was Royals "take-it-or-leave-it, we will not work with you" approach to the situation that Royal created as to why I think their customer service....in this instance....is basic & minimal at best.  To me, good customer service is when Royal works with the OP. Not necessarily giving them exactly what they want not matter how unreasonable as other posters have stated, but giving them some kind of compensation. For example: Downgraded to a boardwalk balcony, give them a 3-night dining package. Or paid upgraded to a JS, give them some OBC to take the sting out of the extra price.  Win-win for all.

 

 

You are correct. As Royal is sailing at full capacity, they have no reason to provide goodwill At least until the next economic downturn.

 

And I don't think I ever said customer service was poor, just minimal at best.

 

 

The OP also refused the boardwalk balcony on Symphony, which was admittedly a step down but it was still on Symphony which as you say is the ship they wanted. Personally I would have asked to be wait listed for a regular balcony and taken the boardwalk balcony. I don't fault Royal at all for not price protecting a year out, and laud them for the offer of $200 obc. I didn't mean to put words in your mouth but essentially Royal did more than they were required to do. Could they have done more? Sure, but they are the ones that know exactly what the OP's business (and ours) is worth to the company so they know not to give away the farm in trying to keep people happy. (And maybe if the OP had asked for something for taking the boardwalk balcony they would have received something but as I understand it they nixed the idea out of hand so it's understandable that the customer service rep didn't offer anything further.) (I also find it a little strange that all the balconies are reserved this far from the cruise.)

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1 hour ago, sparks1093 said:

The OP also refused the boardwalk balcony on Symphony, which was admittedly a step down but it was still on Symphony which as you say is the ship they wanted. Personally I would have asked to be wait listed for a regular balcony and taken the boardwalk balcony.

 

Yeah, I would have done the same.  I'm a Ocean view Balcony kind of guy but  have toyed with the idea of Boardwalk or Central Park.

 

1 hour ago, sparks1093 said:

I don't fault Royal at all for not price protecting a year out, and laud them for the offer of $200 obc. I didn't mean to put words in your mouth but essentially Royal did more than they were required to do. Could they have done more? Sure, but they are the ones that know exactly what the OP's business (and ours) is worth to the company so they know not to give away the farm in trying to keep people happy. (And maybe if the OP had asked for something for taking the boardwalk balcony they would have received something but as I understand it they nixed the idea out of hand so it's understandable that the customer service rep didn't offer anything further.) (I also find it a little strange that all the balconies are reserved this far from the cruise.)

 

All true. We don't know all of the nitty-gritty details of the OP's interactions. Point taken that Royal is not going to give away the farm. I would have asked to sweeten the deal with a few extras and even escalated it to a manager.  But that's the annoying part. I shouldn't have to escalate. They cancelled the cruise on me. First line customer support should be empowered to offer something once they realized they had an dissatisfied customer on the line.

 

But that's my opinion. I think we are at a stalemate. I respect your opinion as well.

 

 

 

 

Edited by HBE4
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While incredibly unfortunate for the OP, cancellations for a charter happen all the time and should be expected.   If I read it right, this cruise is Super Bowl weekend, so really not a big surprise.   

 

Weve been on RCL every year for the last four years and have have superior service, both from on board staff, and land based support.    Last cruise on Allure,the Social media team sent wine, a fruit bowl, a cheese plate and chocolate covered cherries to our room for sail away.  Totally out of the blue.    RCL rocks. 

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3 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

It was Royals "take-it-or-leave-it, we will not work with you" approach to the situation that Royal created as to why I think their customer service....in this instance....is basic & minimal at best.  To me, good customer service is when Royal works with the OP. Not necessarily giving them exactly what they want not matter how unreasonable as other posters have stated, but giving them some kind of compensation. For example: Downgraded to a boardwalk balcony, give them a 3-night dining package. Or paid upgraded to a JS, give them some OBC to take the sting out of the extra price.  Win-win for all.

 

And I don't think I ever said customer service was poor, just minimal at best.

 

3 hours ago, HBE4 said:

 

In the business universe, when a customer has a problem they know to 'ask to speak to a manager'.....when that often fails they 'escalate it to a higher authority'.....and sometimes, the customer is rewarded from the 'highest level they reach out to'.  

 

First level CS agents can only do so much with their limited authority, next level managers only can do a little more (if they can).....so if the OP wanted they could have escalated it up to the SR VP of Sales perhaps, and tried their luck in the C-Suite level.  How it would have ended, can't say.  What I have highlighted and underlined above from you is curious.....Royal offered them compensation, but it was UNSATISFACTORY to the OP.  Your suggested offer, probably wouldn't have been received well (is my guess by the OP) because they wanted WHAT THEY WANTED.

 

To many customers/buyers think that when something doesn't work out for them, the corporation should 'drop their pants and do whatever the customer wants to make the customer satisfied ---- sorry it just doesn't work that way.

 

 

 

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