Internal conflict….help only no judgement please

[Benthayer Gonbak]

On 5/1/2022 at 4:24 PM, Denny01 said:

I fully understand not wishing to get him in trouble when you haven’t asked for things that he’s not done, but I’d suggest along with the others that you inform the retreat concierge and explain you aren’t complaining but you need a more proactive butler. Describe what you had prior and go that way.
 

not a complaint against him but a need for a butler who will do the special things without being asked.
 

the concierge can then get what you need and help train the current one. Could be he has a Very demanding other passengers.
 

Let the Concierge work it. It will help you And the butler. 

And if he recovers nicely you now have something very positive that could  help him if you are so at mind. 

[Big_G]

I'm in the take it up with the Retreat Manager camp. If he's stretched to thin they'll help him out. If he's just bad as his job they'll also help him out. Either way your experience will improve and that's the most important part.

Edited May 3, 2022 by Big_G

[PTC DAWG]

On 5/1/2022 at 4:43 PM, Covepointcruiser said:

On one cruise we were in a RS and the butler had to apologize to is about the lack of personal service.   There was an extremely needy couple, actually just the husband, who demanded the butler stand outside the Penthouse Suite in case he needed him.   Often times he had to be in the suite to pour drinks including water for the couple and also had to draw water for the bath.

 

 

That’s ridiculous in my opinion. 

Edited May 3, 2022 by PTC DAWG

[TeeRick]

On 5/1/2022 at 5:24 PM, Happy Cruiser 6143 said:

So sorry you're not having good luck with your butler.  We are on the same cruise and have the world's greatest butler (Alex).  The person I would suggest you should talk to would be the Retreat Manager.  That's the person responsible for managing the butlers.  If Celebrity doesn't know about lackluster butlers like yours, then they will continue to be inflicted on other unsuspecting guests.

 

And, no, there would be no extra tip from me.

Yes Linda agreed.  I'm not sure why people are suggesting talking to the Retreat Concierge.  Each ship has a suites manage who is in charge of the Retreat team (butlers and concierges).

[jelayne]

40 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Yes Linda agreed.  I'm not sure why people are suggesting talking to the Retreat Concierge.  Each ship has a suites manage who is in charge of the Retreat team (butlers and concierges).

I know there is a Suite Manager on each ship but they frequently are out of sight.

Last 3 ships only 1 had a Suite Manager who was frequently in the Lounge or on the Dock when ship was in port interacting with guests.  The other 2 ships we had not idea who the SM was.

[Pinboy]

36 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Yes Linda agreed.  I'm not sure why people are suggesting talking to the Retreat Concierge.  Each ship has a suites manage who is in charge of the Retreat team (butlers and concierges).

I always enjoy reading your posts-- 

Sounds like there are Managers for Managers, plus the Hotel Manager , etc. 

Don't you think it's best to " keep it simple " and at first just work it out with the Butler ?

Give him/her a chance to improve, then, if things do not, then it's time to bring your " concerns" to Management.

Otherwise, there would be a formal report attached to his/her file and " might " jeopardize their future position within the Company ? 

We all know--In order to achieve " Butler " level , they had to earn it.

IMO-- It's no " picnic " working on a cruise ship and some folks are impossible to please.

[George C]

I didn’t like the celebrity suite on M class but love royal suites on M . I don’t see a problem with asking for a different butler , but might want to wait since there is a fairly decent chance that your new suite will come with a different butler. 

[NCHPcruiser]

I would NOT leave an extravagant tip for nominal service!  (I understand guilt requiring you to leave a tip, I probably would too.).  I would also request a different butler and personally, I don’t think you have to give a reason.  It should be obvious.     It could be this particular butler is being monopolized by one suite, but it is his responsibility to divide his time equitably among his suites.  He can decide which suites to shortchange.   You paid for the services of a butler (I know they are called something else, but even our ‘Retreat Host’ on our last cruise called himself a butler)  just as any other suite guest and it doesn’t sound like you have unrealistic expectations.  

 

We were lucky on our March Apex cruise (CS) when we had a wonderful butler.   He ask what we would like brought every afternoon (cheese and crackers rotated with shrimp cocktail) which he brought promptly at 4:30 each day.   When he realized we would return to the room about 4:45/5:00 each day with a glass of wine, he started bringing the wine as well, eventually bringing a bottle of my favorite ship Chardonnay.   If he saw us anywhere on the ship he made an extra effort to make sure he spoke to us (sometimes at length-he was a talker!).   He could not have been more helpful.  

[C-Dragons]

1 hour ago, jelayne said:

I know there is a Suite Manager on each ship but they frequently are out of sight.

Last 3 ships only 1 had a Suite Manager who was frequently in the Lounge or on the Dock when ship was in port interacting with guests.  The other 2 ships we had not idea who the SM was.

If necessary, I'm sure if anyone was to ask at Guest Relations, the Suite Manager would be called.  😊

[TeeRick]

1 hour ago, Pinboy said:

I always enjoy reading your posts-- 

Sounds like there are Managers for Managers, plus the Hotel Manager , etc. 

Don't you think it's best to " keep it simple " and at first just work it out with the Butler ?

Give him/her a chance to improve, then, if things do not, then it's time to bring your " concerns" to Management.

Otherwise, there would be a formal report attached to his/her file and " might " jeopardize their future position within the Company ? 

We all know--In order to achieve " Butler " level , they had to earn it.

IMO-- It's no " picnic " working on a cruise ship and some folks are impossible to please.

Yes I do agree.  I would have my first conversation with the butler and that might be all that is needed.  Set expectations and also understand the butler's perspective.  But this is a short cruise and sometimes (rarely however) the assigned butler does not mesh with you.

[Bill Miller]

This couple paid a premium for premium service. It is not their job to manage the cruise ships human resources department. If the lead person in their category can't immediately insure excellent service they need to address the hotel manager for redress.  

After the pandemic and everyone being out of work, there is no excuse for substandard service on a Celebrity Cruise ship, especially in the Suite category. The Butler deserves to Walk the Plank as does his manager who is allowing this disaster to continue.  There are plenty of most excellent cabin attendants that would like to move up.

[Pinboy]

2 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

  But this is a short cruise and sometimes (rarely however) the assigned butler does not mesh with you.

Understood---

Because it is a short cruise , therefore IMO , it's best to contact the Butler asap rather than wait for a Manager to meet with you, hear your " concerns ", speak to the Butler , get back to you, etc.

I'm sure the Manager will contact the Butler prior to meeting with you to find out " if " he/she might know what it's about ( Did the folks in XXX have any problems with you ? Do you have any idea why they want to meet with me ? Are they " difficult " passengers ? ). The Manager will want to be prepared.

 " Set expectations and also understand the butler's perspective"----

Excellent !! Some folks need that lesson !! 

 

 

[Pinboy]

10 minutes ago, Bill Miller said:

there is no excuse for substandard service on a Celebrity Cruise ship, especially in the Suite category.

The Butler deserves to Walk the Plank as does his manager who is allowing this disaster to continue.

"  especially in the Suite category."

Why ? Are they more " Entitled " than the folks that can only afford or chose an inside cabin or other accommodations rather than a Suite ?

" The Butler deserves to Walk the Plank as does his manager who is allowing this disaster to continue ".

Perhaps the folks in Suite XXX are just too difficult to please ??

In that case, every Manager on board is notified and they count down the days until the cruise is over.

 

[hrhdhd]

19 minutes ago, Pinboy said:

"especially in the Suite category." Why ? Are they more " Entitled " than the folks that can only afford or chose an inside cabin or other accommodations rather than a Suite ?

Well, yes, they are entitled to butler service that they have paid for.

[Oceangoer2]

On 5/1/2022 at 4:30 PM, jenlock21 said:

Let me reiterate that I was not looking for judgement, only advice. I did not know if someone on here had been through a similar situation and had something helpful to do. This is new to us in all of our years of   Cruising and our first cruise since Covid. I did not know if this was the new normal or not. That was all. I’m not trying to complain just to see if there was a solution that someone else had found helpful. That is the idea behind a forum. 

Right on!  👍  We try not to be mean, but helpful if we can with our own experiences.

[Pinboy]

2 hours ago, hrhdhd said:

Well, yes, they are entitled to butler service that they have paid for.

The statement reads :

" there is no excuse for substandard service on a Celebrity Cruise ship, especially in the Suite category ".

 Of course they are entitled to Butler service in the Suite category-----they paid for it.

What I question is : Why " especially " in Suite category ?

In every category the passenger is entitled to what they paid for--- 

( While there is a " laughing " reaction to my post, I don't see anything funny about what I wrote ).

 

 

 

[galleycook]

5 hours ago, jelayne said:

I know there is a Suite Manager on each ship but they frequently are out of sight.

Last 3 ships only 1 had a Suite Manager who was frequently in the Lounge or on the Dock when ship was in port interacting with guests.  The other 2 ships we had not idea who the SM was.

Surprising. On our Dec cruise last year, we saw the Suite Manager many times. In fact she even showed up at our cabin on one occasion with maintenance to address an issue. We tipped her as well.

[galleycook]

15 minutes ago, Pinboy said:

The statement reads :

" there is no excuse for substandard service on a Celebrity Cruise ship, especially in the Suite category ".

 Of course they are entitled to Butler service in the Suite category-----they paid for it.

What I question is : Why " especially " in Suite category ?

In every category the passenger is entitled to what they paid for--- 

( While there is a " laughing " reaction to my post, I don't see anything funny about what I wrote ).

 

 

 

I absolutely  agree that everyone is  entitled to what they paid for.  If you paid $100 for a steak, you might expect to have it cooked to perfection, where as if you paid $5 for the exact same steak, getting a little over cooked might be acceptable. Suites are "proportional" more expensive, so there may be an expectation of a higher level of service.

Personally, we are low maintenance but prefer the suite  perks and are willing to pay the higher proportional price for those perks. Some may also expect a higher level of service, which is not unreasonable to expect based on the higher proportional cost.

[helen haywood]

On our Edge cruise last month it was apparent that while capacity had increased since cruising recommenced, staff levels were not adequate.  

[Pinboy]

1 hour ago, galleycook said:

I absolutely  agree that everyone is  entitled to what they paid for. 

So, we are on the same page -- 

Re : "  If you paid $100 for a steak, you might expect to have it cooked to perfection, where as if you paid $5 for the exact same steak, getting a little over cooked might be acceptable "

LOL-- Assuming you live in Toronto ??  Where can I get the same steak that you will pay $100 and I can pay $5 ? I'll take my chances on it being a little overcooked. 

 

[George C]

2 hours ago, Pinboy said:

The statement reads :

" there is no excuse for substandard service on a Celebrity Cruise ship, especially in the Suite category ".

 Of course they are entitled to Butler service in the Suite category-----they paid for it.

What I question is : Why " especially " in Suite category ?

In every category the passenger is entitled to what they paid for--- 

( While there is a " laughing " reaction to my post, I don't see anything funny about what I wrote ).

 

 

 

You get what you pay for, there are basically three classes , normally cabins , suites and upper class suites, perks are different for the three . If you want a butler and most suite perks book a suite. 

[neverlaysup]

When we are in the Retreat, I could care less if I see my Butler/Retreat host. Maybe my needs are different than others.

 

[expattraveler]

8 hours ago, Pinboy said:

"  especially in the Suite category."

Why ? Are they more " Entitled " than the folks that can only afford or chose an inside cabin or other accommodations rather than a Suite ?

" The Butler deserves to Walk the Plank as does his manager who is allowing this disaster to continue ".

Perhaps the folks in Suite XXX are just too difficult to please ??

In that case, every Manager on board is notified and they count down the days until the cruise is over.

 

Wow! Got its shorts in a twist.
 

Pay a higher price the cruise line is advertising for a higher category, you should expect the higher service the cruise line is selling. Just saying….

 

 

 

[galleycook]

2 hours ago, Pinboy said:

So, we are on the same page -- 

Re : "  If you paid $100 for a steak, you might expect to have it cooked to perfection, where as if you paid $5 for the exact same steak, getting a little over cooked might be acceptable "

LOL-- Assuming you live in Toronto ??  Where can I get the same steak that you will pay $100 and I can pay $5 ? I'll take my chances on it being a little overcooked. 

 

The numbers are arbitrary but that's my point. We both got steaks and you are fine with your $5 version (inside cabin). The expectation for the other steak is higher "especially" because it cost $100 (suite). That was just  my interpretation of what Bill Miller said. And yes, it is very expensive to live in Toronto. 

 

I apologise for taking the thread slightly off course as well.

[Ommadawn]

I want to know where people are buying $5 steaks. 🙂