Princess Cruises and shower water rationing

I am not normally one to complain. I really enjoy Princess and have been going on the Diamond Princess for the past 5 years now when it has been around Japan mainly for my love of Japan and cruising.

The recent cruises I have had on Diamond Princess have been awesome but there is one tiny problem. It is the showers in all of the cabins I have stayed in for the past 3 cruises have all had shower heads that dribble water and do not spray at all.

Here is a video I have uploaded to Instragram -

All I did was ask my steward if it could be fixed and all they did was gradually make the dribble a little bigger.

No reasonable person can shower under this dribble, it is a sad and sorry dribble and probably indicates finances are so bad that they need to ration water.

I am going back to the Diamond Princess in October in yet another cabin. I want to make it 100% clear that I love using Princess, love their style and cannot fault their cruise line, staff and style at all. It suits me perfectly. However this shower business and poor maintenance of or lack of water flow cannot go on.

Does anyone have any suggestions of who to send this video to in order that they can get the entire ships showers fixed and flowing properly. I am putting this here in the hope that Princess Cruises sees it and can fix it. I am not seeking any compensation, discounts, cruise credits or anything. They are my favourite cruise line and I am already booked to go back in October and have 4 additional deposits with them for future cruises.

I am just hoping for a reasonable way I can approach Princess, also make this more public to see if others have the same problem in the hope that Princess can fix the showers on Diamond Princess.

Did you mention it to your room steward/guest services when you were on the ship?

He said he did in his original post, and all they did was make the dribble a bit larger. That really is ridiculous, to expect them to shower in that for a week.

I wonder if any of the little holes are clogged. We live with hard water, full of minerals. Periodically, when our showers start dribbling like that, we take the shower heads off and soak them in vinegar.

In between, though, I reach up with a washcloth and scrub it across the face of the shower head. That opens the holes up for a while.

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Take your video (on your phone/tablet) to Passenger Services and ask to show it to the Hotel Manager.

Someone in maintenance will likely get there butt chewed off.

And the shower will improve.

In the meantime, you could try to post your video on the Princess FB page.

That’s crazy!!

I would email a copy to customer relations as well as putting it on their facebook page as they seem to respond to that.

The proper address to send your video complaint is: customerrelations@princesscruises.com

They will probably follow up with a phone call. Be nice in your note. Ranting won't help.

Wow that is terrible. I would have complained to passengers services and taking my showers at the spa until They fixed the problem.

Tony

We had the same problem on Diamond in the March. I mentioned it to our cabin steward and his "solution" was to set the shower head to operate on the narrow central spray, which didn't really improve the flow but at least concentrated the dribble in one narrow stream.

Brisbane41, since you've been cruising regularly on Diamond, can you pinpoint when this problem started to occur? Was the shower good when you first started cruising on her? Was it a sudden change or just a slow deterioration in flow over a number of cruises?

Edit - we were on Caribe deck, C511. It would be interesting to know whether the issue was ship-wide or just in certain areas. I didn't notice anyone else on our cruise complaining about the showers.

I've never had a shower dribble like that on all my Princess cruises, so it seems like the OP has just had bad luck.

He said he did in his original post, and all they did was make the dribble a bit larger. That really is ridiculous, to expect them to shower in that for a week.

A week? We were on the ship for three weeks! :eek: We managed but it wasn't enjoyable showering.

I am sorry that this happened!!!

I do not think that this was any problem with rationing.... A cruise ship would have to have a big problem with their overall water system for that to ever have to happen....

It appears to be a problem with that shower head. Either deposit buildup, or the works in that adjustable spray head is maybe stuck or is just not working. That is what my adjustable spray pattern garden hose sprayer looks like if it gets knocked and shifted in between two settings... not on either one... just kind of stuck in between. Like, between garden shower, and the one center power-wash.

If it is deposit buildup, I wonder if there is 'hard' water there in Asia, that might make this a common problem.

We don't have that issue here where I live, but I do still keep some CLR or Lime-Away on hand!!!

For anyone else reading....

I would recommend that you do NOT just place this on your steward. When you have a plumbing problem, you call the plumber not your maid. And, this advice would apply to anything other than basic cleaning and stocking of supplies.

Take a video like the one here, go personally to Customer Service and let them know that you need a supervisor, and that you have a maintenance issue with the plumbing in your cabin. And, make sure you let them know that you need maintenance to show up or schedule a service call right away.

Also, in a pinch, if there is a problem with the shower in the cabin, I think most every ship will have showers in the spa area.

Also, some shower heads do have the little water flow limiter... I have heard of people who actually take a little wrench or something to take off the shower head, and take out that washer or aerator. Some people always seem to be prepared!!! Hahahaha!!!!

Thanks for that information, we are on Princess in October so will really be checking.

I agree with Jagsfan - it looks to me as if some of the holes are blocked

I'm sorry but I do not understand why so many passengers are willing to accept sub standard service. It is clear the shower head needs to be changed. It is a very simple and easy change, if the cabin steward could not fix within the first few hours I would be at Guest Services and get it resolved. I guarantee if you went to Guest Services and told them you were removing all daily service fees until the problem is fix it would be corrected within a hour.

But what happens is most guest go to Guest Service with a problem, Guest Services acts like they care and just push the problem along.... because the guest will be off the ship in a few days. I like Princess Cruises, it is my first choice for lines to cruise but I will never allow them to provide less than is required.

I'm sorry but I do not understand why so many passengers are willing to accept sub standard service. It is clear the shower head needs to be changed. It is a very simple and easy change, if the cabin steward could not fix within the first few hours I would be at Guest Services and get it resolved. I guarantee if you went to Guest Services and told them you were removing all daily service fees until the problem is fix it would be corrected within a hour.

 

But what happens is most guest go to Guest Service with a problem, Guest Services acts like they care and just push the problem along.... because the guest will be off the ship in a few days. I like Princess Cruises, it is my first choice for lines to cruise but I will never allow them to provide less than is required.

On cruises out of Australia there are no daily service fees, it's part of the fare and cannot be removed.

We did not have this situation on the Diamond 2 years ago.

In April on the Caribbean, we did have an issue. I took it first to the stateroom host, then to Passenger Services. They sent a man who, bluntly, didn't have a clue what he was doing. I went back to Passenger Services. After 3 trips, they sent a supervisor who found and fixed the problem. Don't take "No" for an answer.

But, the point is kind of the same....

One does have to be more assertive, go thru the right channels to the correct powers that be, and let them know that you expect an issue to be address, ASAP, no matter what... No other options.

Again, if I have a plumbing problem, I don't expect that my housecleaner/maid service would handle it.

In fact... Princess and probably most ALL cruise lines, have very narrow expectations and job-descriptions for the stewards.

I can remember when we embarked on one cruise, and first met our steward, you know how they usually introduce themselves and go over things... We let them know there was something we wanted for our cabin... the response, a very clear "Call this number...." They didn't even pause for 30 seconds to pick up the phone and call for us. Now, keep in mind, we have always had good, to excellent, service!!!! But this is just how it is....

All of this goes thru my mind every time I hear of somebody having issues with something in their cabin, and complain that 'the cabin steward didn't fix it'. That is why there are technicians, plumbers, maintenance, room service, etc.. etc.. etc.

I think that this is a good time for another PSA that your cabin steward is none of these things.

I think cruisers often have very high, and sometimes unrealistic expectations of cabin stewards.

I would not have those expectations of maid service at a land based resort.

Cabin Stewards are just that, really cleaners and fetchers and carriers. They are not part of the maintenance crew.

"it is a sad and sorry dribble and probably indicates finances are so bad that they need to ration water."

:'):')

That's a joke, right??

The very last thing they'd need to ration on a ship in the middle of the ocean is water. All the water that you're using comes from the ocean (there are exceptions where they'll add water while in port). All they have to do is suck it into the ship and run it through the purifier.

BTW: for those who thought it might be "mineral build-up" in the shower head...that shouldn't be it. The ship water is very close to distilled, i.e. no minerals, just 2 Hydrogen atoms and 1 Oxygen atom.

We had the same problem on Diamond in the March. I mentioned it to our cabin steward and his "solution" was to set the shower head to operate on the narrow central spray, which didn't really improve the flow but at least concentrated the dribble in one narrow stream.

 

Brisbane41, since you've been cruising regularly on Diamond, can you pinpoint when this problem started to occur? Was the shower good when you first started cruising on her? Was it a sudden change or just a slow deterioration in flow over a number of cruises?

 

Edit - we were on Caribe deck, C511. It would be interesting to know whether the issue was ship-wide or just in certain areas. I didn't notice anyone else on our cruise complaining about the showers.

To answer that I can pinpoint it entirely.

In August 2014 I was on Diamond Princess in L245 and had no shower issues.

In July 2016 I was on the ship again and this time in C400 a Penthouse Suite and there definitely was no problems there.

In October 2017 I was on the ship again in L248 and definitely had the problem. It just dripped on spray and no matter where you stood in the shower cubicle it would not reach. I complained to reception several times and was given a brand new shower head that did not fix the issue at all. I had to stand in the shower with a very narrow jet stream that would reach my body.

I was on Diamond Princess again in January 2018 in C535 and had the exact same problem. This time I undid the shower head myself and found a water saving device and removed it. It fixed it slightly but the water was still a miserable dribble. I also had family members on the same cruise occupying cabins C531, C511 and C517. They all had the same problem and had to use it on the very narrow jet spray and not the wide shower spray.

Oddly enough I ended up in L248 again just this July and had the same spray issue as last October and January.

As I said I like the cruise line and the ship, the Japanese cruises are very friendly and relaxing. I have taken the video in the hope that they can fix it. I am due to return in October.

"it is a sad and sorry dribble and probably indicates finances are so bad that they need to ration water."

 

:'):')

That's a joke, right??

The very last thing they'd need to ration on a ship in the middle of the ocean is water. All the water that you're using comes from the ocean (there are exceptions where they'll add water while in port). All they have to do is suck it into the ship and run it through the purifier.

 

BTW: for those who thought it might be "mineral build-up" in the shower head...that shouldn't be it. The ship water is very close to distilled, i.e. no minerals, just 2 Hydrogen atoms and 1 Oxygen atom.

yes that is a joke! I am glad you can understand my humour and attempt to take the situation in good humour.

I suspect that may have been the issue on our cruise in C511. I forgot to mention in my earlier post that the water pressure from the handbasin tap was also poor - the only advantage of that was that DH didn't "drown" as much of the vanity as usual. ;)This tends to indicate that the issue is not with the shower head but with the water pressure to the cabin.

The problem may have been exacerbated by the warm temperature of the cold water. It was so warm that we didn't use any hot in the mix when showering.

Thanks for the explanation, CHPURSER. I do understand the issues but feel that passengers should be able to get sufficient water pressure to their cabin to provide a decent shower per person once a day.

So far Diamond is the only ship we have experienced this issue on. It's something I will be keeping a close eye on in future. If Princess is skimping on water pressure across the fleet we would, sadly, stop cruising with them.

To answer that I can pinpoint it entirely.

 

In August 2014 I was on Diamond Princess in L245 and had no shower issues.

 

In July 2016 I was on the ship again and this time in C400 a Penthouse Suite and there definitely was no problems there.

 

In October 2017 I was on the ship again in L248 and definitely had the problem. It just dripped on spray and no matter where you stood in the shower cubicle it would not reach. I complained to reception several times and was given a brand new shower head that did not fix the issue at all. I had to stand in the shower with a very narrow jet stream that would reach my body.

 

I was on Diamond Princess again in January 2018 in C535 and had the exact same problem. This time I undid the shower head myself and found a water saving device and removed it. It fixed it slightly but the water was still a miserable dribble. I also had family members on the same cruise occupying cabins C531, C511 and C517. They all had the same problem and had to use it on the very narrow jet spray and not the wide shower spray.

 

Oddly enough I ended up in L248 again just this July and had the same spray issue as last October and January.

 

As I said I like the cruise line and the ship, the Japanese cruises are very friendly and relaxing. I have taken the video in the hope that they can fix it. I am due to return in October.

It looks like the 500 section of Caribe deck definitely has problems.

L248 is in a completely different sector of the ship which is a bad sign - so either there is more than one water line that is faulty, or it's ship-wide. Though if it was ship wide I would have expected to have heard more people complaining, and I didn't.

We got used to it after the first week and, although somewhat annoying, it didn't ruin our cruise. And Diamond is such a lovely ship in many other ways. I definitely preferred her over Golden for some odd reason. The crew members we came in contact with were the best we've ever encountered on a Princess ship.

It seems that most pax do not understand the financial aspects of making fresh water on a cruise ship.

 

First, you need to understand that people living and traveling on a cruise ship use a lot of fresh water; about one cubic meter, or one ton, of water per person, per day.

 

Fresh potable water is not cheap to make or buy. If the ship produces it from sea water, it costs around US$60 per ton to produce. If they are able to purchase it in port, the cost drops to around US$40 per ton. If the ship carries 3,000 pax and 1,500 crew, the cruise line is going to spend between $180,000 and $270,000 per day for fresh water.

 

Cruise lines are in the habit of cutting costs as much as they can.

Most mass market lines have installed water saving reducers on their shower lines, and have reduced onboard water pressure. Both these ideas save a substantial amount of water - and money.

 

They have also made water consumption a major element in computing the annual bonuses for Captains and Chief Engineers. The more water that is saved results in higher annual earnings for the Captain and Chief.

 

Most of the time, the poor water pressure is not a major problem for cruisers. But if you happen to get a cabin at the end of the water main, or your shower head has a problem, you are out of luck. The video posted by the OP looks like a shower at the end of the water line. There is not sufficient pressure there to push out enough water. It's not going to get better. The Princess Chief Engineer is not going to sacrifice his annual bonus to improve your experience.

The cruise lines will start taking notice when passengers vote with their wallets and start taking their business to other competing cruise lines that do not ration water. Any ships officer who rations water like that should be keel-hauled indefinitely.