passengers

[beemerrider]

Hello All

 

A Merry Xmas to all. Last week I was on the Caribbean Princess and you know, I like to sit/stand around the purser's or the tour desk. Well, one evening I was enjoying a drink at the lobby bar after enjoying a day in St. Maarten when these 2 idiots show up at the tour desk. They had double booked themselves on a tour and wanted a refund for 2 of the tickets. The staff at the tour desk explained to them that it was past the deadline for refunds and they could not get one. They asked to see the manager and they said that he was busy. They reiterated that they could not get a refund because it was past the deadline. They got a little rude with the staff so they went and got the manager. A few minutes later, he came out(don't know his name) and asked what the problem was. These 2 guys said that they had double booked themselves on a tour and wanted a refund. The manager then told them the same thing that his staff told them, that it was passed the refund deadline but he would see what he could do. He came back a few minutes later and told them that he refunded them 2 tickets but at the same time gave them heck for not talking to each other and communicating better. You know, I applaud that manager. Some people have to start taking responsibilty for themselves so that manager had every right to scold. I would have done the same with the exception of refunding the tickets. That Manager made a great analogy and it was if they would have done that back home for a play or a concert, would they have gotten a refund and the answer is clearly NO!!

So before you go book a tour or anything else for that matter, talk to each other, commmunicate and maybe, just maybe, you will save yourself some money and even better, some embarrassment for being just plain stupid!!!! Again, cuddos to that manager for sticking up for himself and his staff. Princess has P&P also, so just because you are ona holiday does not excuse you from being stupid or ignorant.

[paul929207]

You have to wonder how they were able to find the ship.

[westwind6371]

I have been on 11 Princess and I can truly say the only thing I really dislike on any of the trips is the way SOME passengers treat staff members. It doesnt happen that often, but a very small number of people are real jerks when it comes to being nasty to staff.

 

When ever I can, I try to talk to the staff person and compliment them on how well they handled a real jerk! They are human too and sometimes a little compliment will pick their spirits up after a bad incounter. If they really handled it well, I seek out their supervisor and let them know what a great employee they have. I hope that my actions make up for the lack of manners by some of my fellow passengers.

 

I am sure it may happen at times, but I have never witnessed a Princess employee acting unprofessionally towards a customer, and in 11 cruises, that is a good record for any organization.

 

OK, the rant is over, thanks for listening;-))

 

fair winds

Dave

[NavySis]

I work for FedEx and you wouldn't beleive how rude some people are to me and my co-workers. Yesterday I was trying to explain that the packages would go out that day, but they wouldn't arrive unitl Wed. Some people couldn't understand that nothing was going to be del today because of Christmas. They just couldn't grasp that we don't deliver on Christmas.

[giftwrapper]

I also work with the public in a large retail store. People can be down right rude, mean, stupid, etc. you fill in the blanks. And yet because the customer is always right ha! ha! our managers also allow people to not take reasponsibility for their own stupid mistakes. And I am sure the cruise industry is no different than a large retail store, they want the customer to return.

[custompcsys]

Unfortunately, there are some people who view the service personnel who serve them as somehow lower on the social scale than they are and don't feel they have to treat them with respect. I take great pleasure in walking up to these obnoxious folks and asking them if they treat everyone like that or just people they feel are beneath them :D

 

Thank goodness it doesn't happen too often.

[Cruisin' Chick]

My last job was in a service oriented company so I can certainly feel for that manager. As he said, the two passengers should have talked to each other about shore exs. And there is plenty of time (a couple of days most of the time) before the port to cancel...and Princess makes it easy to cancel with that drop off box by the shore exs window. I hope these guys didn't fill out their comment card at the end of the cruise as I imagine they probably would have reamed most of the crew members (and maybe even took off their autotips).

[dforeigner]

You should have walked up to them and told them, "Here's your sign!" :D

 

 

[NavySis]

Unfortunately, there are some people who view the service personnel who serve them as somehow lower on the social scale than they are and don't feel they have to treat them with respect. I take great pleasure in walking up to these obnoxious folks and asking them if they treat everyone like that or just people they feel are beneath them :D

 

Thank goodness it doesn't happen too often.

I agree with you because I see it all the time. My sister used to work at a Pizza Place and she said the the people in trash appartments would give bigger tips than others.

[Kan't Wait]

It seems that more and more people find it acceptable to be mean and nasty when something isn't going their way. I too work in a customer service based job and I am always hanging up the phone and saying "I hate people".

I treat people with patience and kindness and you'd be surprised at how they look at me, it's almost like they are so abused that they can't believe someone is actually being kind. I always ask them how they are doing and tell them they are doing or did a great job. I always get a smile and I can tell it makes them feel human again.

[nschurr]

I work for FedEx and you wouldn't beleive how rude some people are to me and my co-workers. Yesterday I was trying to explain that the packages would go out that day, but they wouldn't arrive unitl Wed. Some people couldn't understand that nothing was going to be del today because of Christmas. They just couldn't grasp that we don't deliver on Christmas.

 

You should have sent them to the Post Office, they deliver on Christmas and every other day:) .

[Kerry&LuAnn]

Besides passengers who treat service personnel rudely, there are also many passengers who regard service personnel as "invisible"... they aren't significant. We try to make eye contact, smile, and greet every ship staff person we encounter. When we stop and say hello to the guy polishing the railings or the staff touching up the paint on a deck area, they seem surprised to be noticed, and they always respond with a warm smile. All of these people, from the captain on down, work together to make our vacation a very pleasant experience.

[qiangf2]

People make mistakes, passengers or staffs. But you can always get things done if you ask nicely. There is really no need to be rude or raise voice, which often does opposite.

[Kan't Wait]

People make mistakes, passengers or staffs. But you can always get things done if you ask nicely. There is really no need to be rude or raise voice, which often does opposite.

 

How true, if most people only realized that yelling at the person that can help you is counter productive.

[abbydancer2003]

We were on the Island last year and our traditional seating table was at the dining room entrance. I would have moved it, but it was only a 3 day cruise. As a result we heard a lot of the conversations that the maitre'd had with arriving passengers. The first night a couple of young ladies showed up an hour late. He said "where have you been? We've been waiting for you". We thought it was masterfully done. He gently chided them, without making them feel bad.

 

It must have worked because they were on time the next day.

 

abby

[Tina G]

One of the smarter things I did while raising two children was to make them work in service jobs between college years. My daughter worked at a family style restaurant chain after her freshman year. She came home in tears many nights. I pointed out to her that this could be her life if she didn't work hard in school. She graduated with honors, and she still has nightmares about that waitress job ten years ago!;)

[gooch47]

There is no way I could work in a service industry. I'd be fired the first day for slapping someone.

 

I, too, try to compliment service workers especially if I see they are having a bad experience with someone. You should see their faces light up.

[geoherb]

I double booked one excursion online for us in Ketchikan. It's easy to do. Fortunately, I noticed at the beginning of the cruise that we had four tickets instead of just two--way before the deadline to turn in the extra ones. I always check the tickets when we receive them to make sure we get what we want.