Housekeeping moving to once a day?

[mek]

13 hours ago, Cruise5life said:

Lol.  29 days at sea last month.  And never had a wet towel.   
rotating towels and not hanging them in the closed up bathroom helps a lot. 
 

LOL - Oh just what I want to see - towels draped all over my cabin so they can dry faster. Sounds like camping to me. No thanks.

Edited February 19, 2023 by mek

[Georgia_Peaches]

4 hours ago, little britain said:

I didn’t even want to know why they need the bed making twice a day…!!! Unless they are having a lot of  “mommy and daddy time” 💕 

 

We have never asked for ice. What is the need for ice? And why twice a day? What am I missing?

We also like ice in our room. Mainly for making drinks. 

[S.A.M.J.R.]

Here's the bottom line...  

It doesn't matter how much people complain on forums. 

It doesn't matter how much people complain to their room stewards.

It doesn't matter how much people complain to GS (and to the poster who said they'd be at GS complaining every day... go ahead and waste your time).

It probably doesn't matter how much people complain on their post cruise survey. 

 

Want to REALLY make an impact?  STOP BOOKING CRUISES WITH ROYAL.  Let all your "sailing buddies" know to do the same thing.  Cancel cruises you have booked.  As long as people are still sailing, why should Royal (any cruise line) change things back?  Businesses don't do ANYTHING for "the good of the customer".  They do EVERYTHING to bring in more money (or not spend as much). 

 

I agree with the concerns regarding pullman/pullout beds.  My guess is guests will either need to:

A) Put the bed "back up" in the morning

B) Put the bed "out" in the evening

C) Leave it out all the time (and let the room steward know that's what you want).

 

This is really no different than any hotel in the US. 

[BND]

8 minutes ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

 

 

This is really no different than any hotel in the US. 

I made that point on one of the other previous posts on this same topic.  It's done, so people need to decide how important it is to them and then either stay or move on, but I wish they would quit complaining before even experiencing it.

Edited February 19, 2023 by BND

[Cruise5life]

54 minutes ago, mek said:

LOL - Oh just what I want to see - towels draped all over my cabin so they can dry faster. Sounds like camping to me. No thanks.

Yup sure looks like camping to me.  Lol.   
I’ll take camping any day.   
Day 11 of my 15 day in Panama last month.   No service at all  

[Kbonner]

Well my decision is: when not in a suite with continued twice daily cabin service, I will opt out of automatic gratuity and pay (in a regular balcony cabin or lower category ) just 50% of the required gratuity scheme. It will not harm the cabin steward as he has now double the rooms once per day. He just has twice the amount of envelopes with less cash inside. 

[Cruise5life]

33 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

We also like ice in our room. Mainly for making drinks. 

I don’t drink. But I do use ice to fill my yeti with some crystal lite.    
usually the ice can last all day.   
And if I go to the buffet. I always refresh the ice.      

[Denversail]

3 minutes ago, BND said:

I made that point on one of the other previous posts on this same topic.  It's done, so people need to decide how important it is to them and then either stay or move on, but I wish they would quit complaining before even experiencing it.

I like to think of it more as mourning the old ways than complaining. Folks need to process the change and vent their frustration. Most people don’t handle change well. What you call complaining is a normal response when presented with something different than one is used to.

[Cruise5life]

3 minutes ago, Kbonner said:

Well my decision is: when not in a suite with continued twice daily cabin service, I will opt out of automatic gratuity and pay (in a regular balcony cabin or lower category ) just 50% of the required gratuity scheme. It will not harm the cabin steward as he has now double the rooms once per day. He just has twice the amount of envelopes with less cash inside. 

Lol now that’s funny.   So your going to take it out on the crew for what the cruise lines doing.    
you sound fun at parties.  Lol.  

[lovelife]

Just walked off Oasis - still twice a day service.

[lovelife]

DUPLICATE

Edited February 19, 2023 by lovelife

[lovesthebeach2]

49 minutes ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

Here's the bottom line...  

It doesn't matter how much people complain on forums. 

It doesn't matter how much people complain to their room stewards.

It doesn't matter how much people complain to GS (and to the poster who said they'd be at GS complaining every day... go ahead and waste your time).

It probably doesn't matter how much people complain on their post cruise survey. 

 

Want to REALLY make an impact?  STOP BOOKING CRUISES WITH ROYAL.  Let all your "sailing buddies" know to do the same thing.  Cancel cruises you have booked.  As long as people are still sailing, why should Royal (any cruise line) change things back?  Businesses don't do ANYTHING for "the good of the customer".  They do EVERYTHING to bring in more money (or not spend as much). 

 

I agree with the concerns regarding pullman/pullout beds.  My guess is guests will either need to:

A) Put the bed "back up" in the morning

B) Put the bed "out" in the evening

C) Leave it out all the time (and let the room steward know that's what you want).

 

This is really no different than any hotel in the US. 

1 On Land we have many many more choices of resorts, hotels, etc
2  On Land we have many many choices of restaurants to try

3 On Land there are many different activities to choose what to do for entertainment 

4 On Land there is no ocean

 

I agree with everything you wrote. If you love being on the ocean like I do, with the limited amount of cruise lines and ships to choose from compared to Land based travel, we have no choice but to accept the changes which will may restrict the amount of travel for some.

 

Royal is a business and they are doing what they have to do to show profit for the shareholders.
 

 

Edited February 19, 2023 by lovesthebeach2

[lovesthebeach2]

33 minutes ago, Cruise5life said:

I don’t drink. But I do use ice to fill my yeti with some crystal lite.    
usually the ice can last all day.   
And if I go to the buffet. I always refresh the ice.      

I bring one too 😁

[OSUZorba]

5 hours ago, little britain said:

I didn’t even want to know why they need the bed making twice a day…!!! Unless they are having a lot of  “mommy and daddy time” 💕 

 

We have never asked for ice. What is the need for ice? And why twice a day? What am I missing?

A lot of Americans like ice and unlike a hotel or your house, there isn't an easy way to get ice otherwise on a ship.

[nelblu]

1 hour ago, mek said:

LOL - Oh just what I want to see - towels draped all over my cabin so they can dry faster. Sounds like camping to me. No thanks.

Hey, how about hanging them out on the balcony.🤣

[alfaeric]

I sure hope the needy reply to this by going someplace else ASAP so that cruise fares drop for the people who think twice a day is wasteful. 
 

Please. 

[OSUZorba]

1 hour ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

Here's the bottom line...  

It doesn't matter how much people complain on forums. 

It doesn't matter how much people complain to their room stewards.

It doesn't matter how much people complain to GS (and to the poster who said they'd be at GS complaining every day... go ahead and waste your time).

It probably doesn't matter how much people complain on their post cruise survey. 

 

Want to REALLY make an impact?  STOP BOOKING CRUISES WITH ROYAL.  Let all your "sailing buddies" know to do the same thing.  Cancel cruises you have booked.  As long as people are still sailing, why should Royal (any cruise line) change things back?  Businesses don't do ANYTHING for "the good of the customer".  They do EVERYTHING to bring in more money (or not spend as much). 

 

I agree with the concerns regarding pullman/pullout beds.  My guess is guests will either need to:

A) Put the bed "back up" in the morning

B) Put the bed "out" in the evening

C) Leave it out all the time (and let the room steward know that's what you want).

 

This is really no different than any hotel in the US. 

 

I agree with you. The only way it ever goes back is if people stop booking, which won't happen.

 

Difference in a cruise cabin and a standard hotel room, though, is at least 100 square feet. I also don't tip the hotel cleaners $6/person/day.

 

Sofa beds probably aren't that big of a deal to put up, not sure about the Pullmans, though.

Edited February 19, 2023 by OSUZorba

[JeffT237]

We'll see for ourselves in a couple of weeks but my feeling is although the Royal Caribbean experience may be different than pre pandemic, we will still receive excellent service and find good value in cruising and we will continue to take cruise vacations.  We have sailed twice in the last year with Princess and despite all of the doom and gloom from experienced Princess cruisers we enjoyed the cruise and received great service from the crew.  

 

The threat from loyal passengers to leave Royal, stop cruising or take off the auto gratuities or not tip at all will not correct the issue of a perceived drop in service or quality.  These ships are sailing at capacity, on board spending is up despite the very high prices and almost everything is sold out pre cruise.  Once a day cabin service is not a deal breaker for us, I'm confident if I need something I can get it.  But if for others it is then you have choices.  I suspect the number of people who actually protest by leaving Royal or who stop cruising will be minimal and won't impact the industries bottom line.  As others have said change is difficult for many people.

[Mum2Mercury]

12 hours ago, fredmdcruisers said:

Why is everyone posting what they want? There is no voting! Once per day service is official. With 25 cabins now, there will be no time to bring you more towels, ice or anything. Get it during your once a day service and stop whining!

No one thinks he or she is voting here, but we do know that Royal (at least sometimes) reads these boards, and hopefully they're hearing the dissatisfaction with this choice. 

12 hours ago, fredmdcruisers said:

Take your dishes back to Windjammer when you go to eat. 

Carry dirty dishes up the elevator (other guests will love that), and then do what with them?  Hand them to the Washy-Washy staff?  

11 hours ago, fsjosh said:

The end result of this will be bad reviews for cabin staff and them taking the brunt of the complaints. 

Agree ... it'd be wrong to take this out on the little guy, the cabin steward. 

11 hours ago, OSUZorba said:

I still want to know how they'll handle sofa beds and Pullmans and giving out paper campuses.

Yes, pulling out the sofa beds is particularly going to pose a problem. 

9 hours ago, Grandma Petania said:

We are currently onboard the Harmony.  Discovered that they will implement the once a day service beginning NEXT week.  We had already decided that we would prefer evening, as we often choose to sleep in and decline service in the morning anyway.  

I know opinions differ, but I don't get the point in having the bed made just before you get into it.  I'll be in and out of the room all day, and I don't want the bed a mess.  

6 hours ago, Kbonner said:

... My last steward told me under the old cabin scheme he needs to serve roughly 12-13- cabins, now he needs to serve ca 25 cabins. Does he really get potentially a pay (gratuity) increase by 100% ?

Thinking this through: 

- They just raised the cost of daily tips.  

- Now they're lowering the service (for non-suites). 

- How can Royal justify those two choices?  

- Yes, the cabin steward will receive more money (assuming everyone tips), but -- with double the cabins -- he's going to work for it.  

3 hours ago, nelblu said:

Wonder if I choose to tip @ the Suite level, can I choose 2X day cabin service.

Since the suite gratuities are only slightly higher than regular rooms, 2Xs a day service is quite a bargain.  

2 hours ago, cruisegirl1 said:

Tne compass can be delivered by anyone and simply left outside on the door 

But someone still has to look at the list of people who want the Compass, pick them up, deliver them.  Small tasks add up.  

8 minutes ago, nelblu said:

Hey, how about hanging them out on the balcony.🤣

Assuming one is in a balcony cabin.  

[OSUZorba]

55 minutes ago, Cruise5life said:

Lol now that’s funny.   So your going to take it out on the crew for what the cruise lines doing.    
you sound fun at parties.  Lol.  

I'll still auto tip. But how exactly is paying half for half the service taking it out on the crew? This is what I really don't understand about tipping culture, why should someone tip the same regardless of service?

[DirtyDawg]

1 hour ago, BND said:

I made that point on one of the other previous posts on this same topic.  It's done, so people need to decide how important it is to them and then either stay or move on, but I wish they would quit complaining before even experiencing it.

But if people around here never complained before experiencing a change in service on a cruise line  CC's total post count wouldn't be 50M, it would be around 50. 😉

[resetjet]

Alot of these comments are from people who havent done it.  I was fine with the IDEA.  I am self sufficient and dont need to be pampered.  The problem is you dont get a choice of times. Normally on a 2 day clean,  we often sleep in and only get one anyway.  But we can always count on the evening clean.  This doesnt work that way. It creates a problem for the steward. He is already killing himself doing full resets on 25 or 35 rooms a day.  Sometimes he wont be able to get to you at all depending on your time in room.  Again its not the same amount of work for them.  Its much more.  So the result is dirtier rooms,  towel issues,  dish issues,  stewards overwhelmed an unable to satisfy requests.  Its a shame as this was a nice part of cruising.  Having a maid for a week.  Now you have an overworked,  overwhelmed guy that only has time to hit the big points.

[cruisegirl1]

1 hour ago, Cruise5life said:

Yup sure looks like camping to me.  Lol.   
I’ll take camping any day.   
Day 11 of my 15 day in Panama last month.   No service at all  

NO SERVICE FOR 11 DAYS?  

You used the same towel for 11 days? You have not had any  trash emptied  for 11 days? 

You have not had your carpet vacuumed for 11 days?
 You have not had your sheets changed after 11 days?
You have not had your bathroom cleaned after 11 days?

m

[cruisegirl1]

51 minutes ago, nelblu said:

Hey, how about hanging them out on the balcony.🤣

Really shouldn’t put clothes out on the balcony. Years ago we found that the shirt we had left out had a burnt hole in it, When  we looked on the balcony floor we saw cigarette butt. Could’ve been a disaster.

 

m

[cruisegirl1]

1 hour ago, Kbonner said:

Well my decision is: when not in a suite with continued twice daily cabin service, I will opt out of automatic gratuity and pay (in a regular balcony cabin or lower category ) just 50% of the required gratuity scheme. It will not harm the cabin steward as he has now double the rooms once per day. He just has twice the amount of envelopes with less cash inside. 

It is my understanding that the cabin attendant gets about $3–4  pp/day. a day,  just a small portion of the daily gratuity charge. If you are inclined to remove half of the attendants tip it would be about $2/ day.

 

I don’t have the exact breakdown, but I know it’s been posted on this site.

m