What would make you cruise...

with a cruise line that has very mixed reviews on all of its ships?

No name to colour your thinking but we've got an offer of a 10% discount with this line as we would be newbies. Itineraries are interesting but I'm torn about the reviews, especially as some come from friends of ours who have sailed on a couple of the ships and have vowed never to step onboard again. I would also add that these were free cruises as they were guest speakers, so the cost of the trip was not a factor.

I would give a great deal of weight to what my friends said, especially if we saw things pretty much the same. I would find out from them what factors made them feel the way that they do and if those same factors were a concern for me then it would take a great deal to give that cruise line a try and I'm not sure that 10% would be sufficient.

Totally agree with poster #2 -- I would question my friends and determine exactly why they won't sail on such-and-such cruise line/ship.

I agree with what has been posted.

I would speak with friends who I respect and who know me well to get their assessment of the cruise line and or ship and have an interactive conversation with them.

Keith

You and your friends know each others cruising likes. If they recommend against sailing that line, I'd listen to them. JMHO.

When I read bad reviews of something, I look to see if there is a common factor. In your shoes, I’d check the reviews and your friends’ reports, and see if there was common ground, and if it’s something that would bother me too. If so, then I would stay away from that cruise line. Usually people are excited to try a new line or a new ship, so the 10% discount would worry me more than it would tempt me.

I would give a great deal of weight to what my friends said, especially if we saw things pretty much the same. I would find out from them what factors made them feel the way that they do and if those same factors were a concern for me then it would take a great deal to give that cruise line a try and I'm not sure that 10% would be sufficient.

I had to laugh when I read this one. We have friends who we took our first 2 cruises with on Disney. Since then they have become loyal to Royal. We have yet to try Royal but have tried Carnival, NCL, and Princess. We have done many vacations together over the last 24 years and have many similar likes. But they have nothing good to say about Carnival even though they have only sailed on them once and then only because other family members chose the cruise line. They have other friends that are loyal to Royal who constantly degrade Carnival so they went on the cruise already knowing they would hate it and ended up picking the cruise apart and not enjoying it. We have sailed mostly on Carnival and have not had a bad cruise yet. I'm willing to try Royal. I just haven't found the Royal ship that was the best fit yet for a vacation we planned. If we had listened to their advise we would have missed a lot of fun, inexpensive cruises that we really enjoyed.

I personally take what others say with a grain of salt. Everyone's experience is going to be different because so many variables are subjective and change with each cruise (ie personnel and fellow cruisers) no matter what the line. I honestly believe that the Carnival cruises we took out of NY, Mobile, New Orleans, and FL all had a slightly different vibe to them based totally on the demographics out of that port and the time of year we sailed. I choose the ship (not line) that best fits our wants out of that vacation. The best way to find out what suits you and your family is to try it. I try not to become a victim of line loyalty....however there are some things that some cruise lines do that make me prefer them over others that don't...like anytime dining and casual dress codes. Things that again would make the ship a best fit for our wants in a vacation.

I always find it interesting when companies are able to serve millions of people per year, have repeat business from many of those customers, and continue to grow their base. Yet, people are more willing to listen to 1-2 people that may or may not have even given it a chance as they are an authority in this.

I always find it interesting when companies are able to serve millions of people per year, have repeat business from many of those customers, and continue to grow their base. Yet, people are more willing to listen to 1-2 people that may or may not have even given it a chance as they are an authority in this.

That doesn't really make sense. Just because a company serves millions doesn't mean the product is for everyone. Spirit Airlines serves millions. I don't need to fly them to know they are not for me.

I had to laugh when I read this one. We have friends who we took our first 2 cruises with on Disney. Since then they have become loyal to Royal. We have yet to try Royal but have tried Carnival, NCL, and Princess. We have done many vacations together over the last 24 years and have many similar likes. But they have nothing good to say about Carnival even though they have only sailed on them once and then only because other family members chose the cruise line. They have other friends that are loyal to Royal who constantly degrade Carnival so they went on the cruise already knowing they would hate it and ended up picking the cruise apart and not enjoying it. We have sailed mostly on Carnival and have not had a bad cruise yet. I'm willing to try Royal. I just haven't found the Royal ship that was the best fit yet for a vacation we planned. If we had listened to their advise we would have missed a lot of fun, inexpensive cruises that we really enjoyed.

 

I personally take what others say with a grain of salt. Everyone's experience is going to be different because so many variables are subjective and change with each cruise (ie personnel and fellow cruisers) no matter what the line. I honestly believe that the Carnival cruises we took out of NY, Mobile, New Orleans, and FL all had a slightly different vibe to them based totally on the demographics out of that port and the time of year we sailed. I choose the ship (not line) that best fits our wants out of that vacation. The best way to find out what suits you and your family is to try it. I try not to become a victim of line loyalty....however there are some things that some cruise lines do that make me prefer them over others that don't...like anytime dining and casual dress codes. Things that again would make the ship a best fit for our wants in a vacation.

That's why I said I would ask them what factors made them feel the cruise line was not something they would recommend and of course if what they talked about were things that aren't important to me then I wouldn't give it a lot of weight. We also book our cruises based primarily on price and itinerary, meaning we'll choose where we want to go and then find the least expensive line that fills the bill. We were fortunate for next year's cruise and snagged a balcony on Anthem for $1770.

We have friends with similar tastes, who have cruised more than we have and on more cruise lines. They time and time again come back to Princess holy grail (but only Regal and Royal ships), telling us how unhappy they have been with RCI, Celebrity, etc.

They never do any research on cruisecritic, so they never actually realize the full potential and the array of opportunities the ships offer, so they never exploit it fully, IMHO. Then they bash the ship because of "horribly long lines at the buffet" (they didn't realize the ship had a ton of other free dining venues besides the Windjammer); no free on demand movies like on Regal Princess (we bring our own tablet with movies and cartoons, so we don't depend on it); bad food (now, that's very subjective); etc.

So, now we are going on Norwegian and once again on RCi, because I no longer make my decisions based on these friends' opinions, because I know better - we are going to enjoy the cruise, unless the engines die and the toilets overflow with sewage or the ship runs aground.

I have cruised most of the major lines and there is only one line we will not cruise again ncl, celebrity we most likely will not cruise, we currently have cruises booked on rccl , celebrity and msc, would have no problem returning to princess, Hal and costa, several other lines we would like to try like Cunard and Oceania, really like suite and there perks our next few cruises all have suite restaurants.

I have cruised most of the major lines and there is only one line we will not cruise again ncl, celebrity we most likely will not cruise, we currently have cruises booked on rccl , celebrity and msc, would have no problem returning to princess, Hal and costa, several other lines we would like to try like Cunard and Oceania, really like suite and there perks our next few cruises all have suite restaurants.

I'm not following you here. You most likely will not cruise Celebrity but you have a cruise booked with them? :confused:

Read other reviews & see if all negative or not

read between the lines

Then decide if bad thing happen like in the reviews would you be miserable then do not book 10% discount or not

If not that bad then go & judge for yourselves

without knowing the details it is your judgement call

I'm not following you here. You most likely will not cruise Celebrity but you have a cruise booked with them? :confused:

Sorry typo caniveral we most likely will not cruise , really enjoyed recent celebrity cruise

I'm not following you here. You most likely will not cruise Celebrity but you have a cruise booked with them? :confused:

ok nevermind

We select based on ship and itinerary. The only time we care about the cruise line is when there is a 'tie' in our evaluation.

That doesn't really make sense. Just because a company serves millions doesn't mean the product is for everyone. Spirit Airlines serves millions. I don't need to fly them to know they are not for me.

The point is if you base your opinion off of one person, that could disqualify you from every offering on the planet.

I share virtually zero interests with my parents. In fact, they don't like cruising at all because of one experience. Let alone they didn't even give it a chance. I had the choice to write off cruising because someone close to me didn't like it. However, there was a big industry out there of people who love it. So I gave it a try, and also loved it. Does it make sense yet?

The point is if you base your opinion off of one person, that could disqualify you from every offering on the planet.

 

I share virtually zero interests with my parents. In fact, they don't like cruising at all because of one experience. Let alone they didn't even give it a chance. I had the choice to write off cruising because someone close to me didn't like it. However, there was a big industry out there of people who love it. So I gave it a try, and also loved it. Does it make sense yet?

That's like comparing a kid who has never driven to an experienced adult who knows from experience what kind of cars they like and dislike. So no, it still doesn't make sense.

Since I don't have any friends, I cannot rely on what they might tell me.

A long time ago, I realized that some folks are wont to complain and they will. However, those folks who don't complain, rarely sing praises (of anything, anywhere).

We quit cruising a particular cruise line, we cruise the itinerary. I just happens that Holland America and Princess seem to have the itineraries we would like to experience. We have the time, since neither of us work any more. If the ship is old, too bad. I'm old and can handle those rough spaces.

Jim

What I would add to the conversation is the fact that we didn't fancy the cruise line before we were offered the 10% discount. It simply made me think a bit more about what we want from a cruise.

Our friends said the (inside) cabins were so small they could hardly move around. The food was no more than adequate and the ship(s) was tired and in places they felt were even grubby. No ambience anywhere and just a feeling of 'not quite right'.

I'm sure we've all been somewhere or seen something that hasn't felt right but you couldn't explain what it was.

We've not made any decision and the discount is not timed so there is no pressure on us.

What I would add to the conversation is the fact that we didn't fancy the cruise line before we were offered the 10% discount. It simply made me think a bit more about what we want from a cruise.

 

Our friends said the (inside) cabins were so small they could hardly move around. The food was no more than adequate and the ship(s) was tired and in places they felt were even grubby. No ambience anywhere and just a feeling of 'not quite right'.

 

I'm sure we've all been somewhere or seen something that hasn't felt right but you couldn't explain what it was.

 

We've not made any decision and the discount is not timed so there is no pressure on us.

why not name the cruise line then others can say good or bad :confused:

Do not book an inside then :halo:

We have been on numerous cruise lines. There are some ships within one of two of each of the cruise line fleets that we will not sail on.

A few years ago we were on a cruise and when I got home I went to read some reviews posted by other people. Reviews ranged from "excellent" to "terrible'. Some people said the food was awful, some said it was wonderful yet the posters were all on the same cruise! When you look at a lot reviews, it seems all ships on all lines get anywhere from "excellent" to "terrible" and everything in between. We don't pay a lot of attention to the reviews, but they're a fun read..

I have taken a ship I swore I would never sail again, for a specific itinerary that it, and no other ship, was doing.