How can reviews vary so much?!

[jerzzgirl]

Two things can sway me :

 

1. No kids/babies on ship : Great review no matter what

 

2. Lots of kids/babies on ship : I'll find something wrong for sure as my blood pressure soars.

LOL - I was reading this comment before I saw who posted it but I didn't even have to look at the posters name to know who it was! :D

 

(P.S. Folgy, you say the same things that I think of saying but I don't have the mountain oysters to post them!)

[tinsel57]

People who have been deemed an expert in their field have been bestowed with that honor for a reason. They have the education, experience and background to be able to make a qualified opinon.

 

With the internet, every Tom Dick and Harriett is able to give an opinion, which is fine, but one must search to see if it's a qualified opinion. One cruise does not an expert make!

 

Four way intersection, four people, one on each corner. Car accident. Chances are you'll get four completely different descriptions of the exact same accident, right down to several differnt colors of the cars involved.

 

Most of us interprept situations, not give facts, and that colors our 'reviews'. We are limited by the depth of our own experience.

[iroyster]

One cruise does not an expert make!

 

 

Tinsel57,

You "tellin" me I "gotta" turn in my expert badge now? Just my luck, nailed again! :rolleyes:

Ira

[bUU]

Expertise comes in many guises. Someone who knows a lot about digital photography is a far better guide about how to take pictures with a digital camera, while on a cruise, than someone who has been on 100 cruises but has never used a digital camera. Furthermore, everyone is an expert on their own experiences, and is an expert on what they've learned, all of which I've found very useful in my own preparations.

 

Also, tinsel mentioned "background" -- that is really critical: Qualitative opinions ("what I like" - "what I don't like") of people who are just like you, even if they have been on fewer cruises, is often far more valuable than opinions of people who are very different from you even if they have been on far more cruises.

[abridalmaven]

My evaluation of a cruise ( or any vacation) is ...Did I have a better time than if I stayed home? If the answer is yes, it was good. If it was no, then it was bad, are some better than others yes, but anytime I am not cooking, working and so on I am happy:D

 

Some people are just nitpicking because they are not happy people in general and not much in life pleases them. I feel sorry for people like that!:p

[colette5479]

It always amazes me on the little things some posters rag on. Things like lukewarm room service, worn carpet, children spashing in the pool, and no towel animals or mints left on the beds make me wonder what kind of lifestyle these people live at home. They must have lobster and prime rib every night at dinner, have nannies for their children, and a wait staff that tends to their every need....please!:rolleyes: Why waste your time looking for the small stuff ? Some people cannot help but complain about every little thing and would love to make readers believe their cruises were ruined because their towel animal did not have sunglasses on.

 

 

Hmmmmm.....will do my best on our cruise next month to see how many things I can find wrong so I can rush back home and tell you guys how horrible it was:D

[Jacqueline]

One of my favoritw complaints is that the pats of butter were too hard ! That person must live a charmed life. BTW this was NOT on RCCL.

[flagger]

....but one must search to see if it's a qualified opinion. One cruise does not an expert make!

Even the so-called professional reviews on this site are just that opinions. It is the same as movie reviewers. You can see the same movie as one who is paid for their opinion and have a far different experience than the "so-called" expert.

 

It does not take a professional nor a seasoned cruiser to recognize cold or lukewarm food, a mediocre cabin attendant, or bad customer service at guest relations. By the way last time I looked, this was called cruise critic not cruise critic critic.

[Blizzard54]

We have sailed 43 times on 28 different ships over the last 26 years.

We have never had a "bad" cruise.

When people ask about our favorite cruise line I explain my perception of the how they differ.

 

I take the reviews I read with a grain of salt. I read them to pick up information on the ship. The rest can vary cruise to cruise.

[Merion_Mom]

Flagger's movie reviewer analogy is a very good one. (oh, my, did I just AGREE with Flagger???? LOL :D)

 

In my home city newspaper, I have become accustomed to the regular reviewers. From past experience, I know which ones tend to like the same movies that I do. The other day, there was a SCATHING review of a movie that I REALLY enjoyed. Sure enough, when I checked the by-line, it was a reviewer from a VERY different city for a paper owned by the same publisher. Local background means A LOT in your perceptions.

 

MY idea of spicy may be very different from someone from Iowa's idea of spicy. So if a CC poster writes that he had a terrible meal because his green beans were SO over-spiced, and I see that this person is from Iowa, I have a good idea how to process that opinion.

 

Carol

 

(PLEASE - no nasty comments from Iowans. It's JUST an example. :))

[tinsel57]

Ah flaggler, but you see, some people don't realize that Vichyssoise is suppose to be served cold!

 

Really how much does it matter, this one thinks this and this one says that... some people place far too much importants on these boards.

 

Most people here to try and help people by giving their opinion, that means you're going to get a million opinions from all sorts of people and they will all vary.

 

The best remedy is to try it yourself, then you can formulate your own opinon!

[madforcruising]

Hmmmmm.....will do my best on our cruise next month to see how many things I can find wrong so I can rush back home and tell you guys how horrible it was:D

Don´t forget to whine about RCCL being so bad about giving you no compensation for this bad cruise and start a whole bunch of threads with RCCL bashing titles. :D :D :D

[Hal from Ohio]

most people have at least one! :) Here's mine.

 

IMHO we (myself included) sometimes have too much and appreciate it too little. Let's not overlook our blessings. For those of you that have been to Labadee, remember what their citizens are now dealing with as the result of hurricane Jeanne. We can never take our freedoms for granted.

 

Pray for our troops. Freedom is not free.

[ozetraveller]

The variety in reviews and opinions is instructive, especially for someone about to go on their first cruise in more than 16 years (me!). The good and the bad have their place, especially if they are honestly held and balanced views.

 

However, I do get the impression that some folks are paying for beer and expecting champagne. A cruise ship is, by definition, a mass market holiday enterprise, not an exclusive resort. To complain, as I have seen, of a crooked bedspread (!!) or a napkin folded wrong is just plain nitpicky.

 

I expect my cruise to be a wonderful experience, with maybe some glitches, but hey, if they occur, I'll get over it! Thanks for all the input and enjoy your next cruise when/wherever it may be.

 

ATTITUDES ARE CONTAGIOUS - IS YOURS WORTH CATCHING?

[cruzobsessed]

our first cruise was in '03 on the majesty. we had nothing to compare it with so we were in awe. then a year later we were on the jewel........imagine, if we were in awe of majesty what our reaction to the jewel was!!!! yet, if i wanted to......i could've complained. our cabin attendant was never around, the food in the dining room wasn't great and the shows were.....o.k. at best.

there is no point in complaining....if you love cruising you take in the whole experience. we ate mostly in the windjammer and the specialty restaurants, enjoyed the shows for their entertainment value and booked our next cruise while still onboard.

for us cruising is the only way to go and go knowing nothing is perfect but for us...this is as close as it gets!!!

[birdie16]

I think people have different expectations of what their cruise will be like. I expect nothing more than a good time on the Monarch and that is what we get! I don't expect all the bells and whistles of the Voyager Class.

 

I also think what you paid for your vacation will change your opinion. I went on a NCL cruise last October at an extremely reduced rate and had a blast...I kept thinking, "I can't believe we got such a great deal on this cruise!" But...if we had paid a lot for that cruise I would not have been as happy...the ship needed dry dock, the food wasn't all that great, entertainment could have been better, etc.

 

Oh, by the way...I do expect towel animals! LOL!!!