Advice for 1st Time Cruisers from a Frequent Cruiser

[Z'Loth]

2 hours ago, Sthrngary said:

I have an idea for you, which I am sure you might have thought about.  I recently did my first Solo cruise.  Before I do anything, I study the options, rules and how it all works.  I choose a ship with NCL that did not have Solo cabins in the hope they would drop the need for me to pay twice. 

 

My upcoming cruise may be the last one for quite a while. It's a makeup cruise from where I had to cancel in September 2022, and it was one of those "use it or lose it" situations. 

[Sthrngary]

Installment: When Your Potential Cruise Seems to have Bad Reviews

 

I have cruise many brands.  Some are better then others but all are relative to the cruise experience you are looking to achieve.  I have noticed of late, a lot of complaining and folks that are really upset with the cruise the booked, are on or have recently finished cruising.  

 

I then see  new cruisers to the brand, making post like "After some of the review I read, I don't know if I want to go on Brand X".  Not so fast folks, before you make that final decision look a little closer.  Allow me to give you some thing to look for and some strategies to take when folks complain about a cruise brand. 

 

Look for the following:

1. If someone posts on a cruise brand board, "I will never cruise the brand again".  Read their topic and see what their issue was.  It might not apply to you.
2. What do folk do a deep complaint online when social media does not fix the issue.  The answer is they want folks to be on their side and looking for Social Media Justification that the issue they had, is all the brand fault.  This is rarely the fact but folk need to have that justification. 
3. Go back on the history of the poster and see if they have a habit of complaining.  I think it will surprise you that some contributors especially those that really are over the top upset, are the ones that always seem to complain. 
4. Look for trends and patterns with complaints.  If it is a one off, let it slide.  If it has to do with let's say port cancelation where their is now a war/conflict; don't blame the cruise brand.  Thank them.  If a lot of the same complaints happen from different guest, have a strategy so it won't effect the quality of your vacation. See my topic below, "Have a Strategy."

How to leverage blogs that are complaining:

1. Have a Strategy: Have a strategy to avoid the issue the poster is complaining about.  On my recent Oceania Cruise, lots of folk were complaining that ports were cancelled for what the poster said was no real reason.  There is always a reason but we the guest might not agree with it.  When I heard this was what seemed to be a frequent situation, I told my guest joining me that their was a high likely hood of a port being cancelled.  I wanted to provide "realistic expectations".  Sure enough, was a port cancelled? Yes, Florence, Italy.  Were we disappointed, Yes.  It is make our entire cruise bad, NO.  We knew it cold happen so it was like "Water off a Duck".  
2. Handle Issues Immediately with Empathy: It is a cruise, things happen. Handle the issue with kindness and a smile.  If you come across as a harsh primidone, you will be treated like one. My approach is to always look for something good, tell the Cruise Hotel Manager how impressed you are early in the cruise.  Then is something happens, later, they are willing to assist you much better.  On my cruise, I did just that.  Yet some other said that the Guest Services was awful.  I found them to be Steller. 
3. Leverage Different Brands:  When I want a small ship, that has lots of ports, I choose brands like Oceania Cruises.  When I want a lot of excitement on a cruise with stellar entertainment, I choose the NCL Haven on the larger ships.  My decision is based on the experience I want.  

So before you cancel a reservation or choose not to use a brand, because of some unkind words you read.  Do your due diligence.  Be a good consumer and don't fall for the person that just want you to cry with them.  Ask yourself a question, could they have planned their cruise better and did they make some mistakes.  Was it all the cruise brands fault.  Nothing is ever black and white.  Cruise never go perfect. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[ldubs]

Good stuff.  Item #2-Handle Issues Immediately, made me pause.  Of course with over 40 cruises we have experienced some issues.  I do understand sometimes there can be a serious issue that requires correction.  Fortunately,  never have I felt the need to report an issue to someone.  No one is perfect.  Mistakes are sometimes made.  Instead of wasting time, we just move on with enjoying the cruise.  I think some of the habitual complainers you mention have a need to escalate small things.