Do Celebrity Care – NO!

[CruisingChick]

I found the statement about cruising in the 90's to be interesting. If you want that kind of service and food you need to cruise on the luxury lines. Otherwise - accept that there has been major downgrading of the mass market cruises.

 

We did a Baltic cruise on the Constellation about 10 years ago. I too was disappointed with the food and that was a long time ago. I wonder if it has to do with suppliers in the Baltics area.

 

We did a 14 night Baltics cruise on Constellation in July 2006 and the food was very good.

[deise17311]

Seems like you want alot of freebies...

 

 

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[Hapytocruise]

Sorry you did not enjoy your cruise - as far as the food goes it is my understanding that European itinary sometimes have difficulty in getting good quality ingredients - same thing happened to us on a British Iles Princess cruise.

 

As far as some of your complaints...I can't feel too badly for you - I would never expect my table in the Oceanview to be available if I left it unattended. That is just common sense how can they possibly know you are returning when many leave their tables and never return. My DH and I always take turns going to get items if we want to remain at the table.

 

I believe the flaming baked alaska is now considered a fire hazard. And I am all about safety - not interested in seeing someones hair go up in smoke.

 

Buffets tend to repeat - I have never experienced one that did not.

 

I agree the cliental is a bit rougher around the edges - but they pay their money and get to cruise just like everybody else. Don't know what Celebrity has to do with that.

 

I've been on many a cruise when not impressed with the Cruise director - IF you completed your comment card and many others did the same with similar opinion - Celebrity will get the message.

 

The drink prices may have included the gratuity versus showing it as extra to the total - my understanding is they sometimes do that when there is a large crowd of folks who do not like to tip. On the other hand if this was not the case - cruise prices have not gone up much and in some cases pricing on special deals and inclusions are rediculously cheap - they have to make a buck somewhere.

 

Regarding shore excursions - while I would be annoyed - I am horrified that you think waiting 10 or 15 minutes too long a grace period. Really you would leave someone stranded:eek:. Which says volumes.

 

Overall my opinion is that you did get a rep as the complaining Aussi. Which may have something to do with why you never got a call back from X.

[deise17311]

"Also a slow braised Osso-Bucco that was about 40mm thick and as chewy as boot leather and tasteless, on both occasions I was offered a replacement meal, however I was so let down I could not take up this offer, the head waiter brought a Chef over on the first occasion and he took notes and apologised, however on the second occasion the head waiter took the chef to the other side of the table and ignored the complaining Australian!"

 

This is the part I have a problem with. The food was not up to your expectations, they apologized and offered another selection...but you were so "let down" you just could not take them up on their offer. I have had a bad meal before but it has never caused me such pain as to ruin an entire evening or cruise.

 

In this particular instance, you complained, they offered resolution, and you were too bummed to accept their offer to resolve it. They even brought the chef over. I am not sure what else they could or should have done in this instance. What EXACTLY were you wanting them to do in this situation??

 

They want obc or some sort of refund of course...

 

 

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[retafcruiser]

.... the few times (very few times) I've had a concern I've called the Captain's Club and spoke directly about my concern with good results...

 

I'm not quite sure what good result you would receive by phoning the Captain's Club - did they offer and send a cruise credit? Or was it just acknowledgement that you had a valid complaint? I think I would prefer a correction to my issue at the time of occurrence.

[deise17311]

People are no longer satisfied with pointing out areas of improvement...they call because they want obc, refunds or some sort of cruise credit...I cannot believe the complaints I've heard about rust on a ship....*newsflash*...salt water and metal = rust!!

 

 

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[DebbieMacG]

Sorry you did not enjoy your cruise - as far as the food goes it is my understanding that European itinary sometimes have difficulty in getting good quality ingredients - same thing happened to us on a British Iles Princess cruise.

 

And where did you get this understanding from? No quality ingredients in Europe and the UK? :eek:

[cstrycha]

What I'm curious about is if the OP, as a self described freelance writer, actually intended this as a submission to The Onion.

[Ma Bell]

The food quality is not ever exactly the same. There are so many variables involved it's not possible for every plate to be perfect. In general, the food on our recent cruises has been better than a couple of years ago. I can't imagine being so upset by a dish that I would not accept a replacement if I was not happy.

 

I also find it remarkable that this review had every area as a maximum 2 star experience. I would find it difficult to respond to something like this.

[vulcan1971]

Thank you Mike and others who have understood that my concerns were that Celebrity failed to answer any of my correspondences, for those who may not have e-mailed Celebrity before the automated responses that I referred to were exactly that, an automatic computer generated response to indicate that my message had been received by Celebrity, these have been the only communication I have received from them.

The civil thing would have been for them to simply acknowledge my concerns and if they did not agree to say so and that would have been that, but to simply ignore them is not the way of a customer focused organisation.

I will admit that I may have been overly critical in scoring my review of the cruise, however it fell far below the standard that we have experienced on our previous Celebrity Cruises, and on Azamara as such I have to say that those who rated it as five star may not have experienced better previously with Celebrity, or on other cruise lines, that they can use as a valid comparison.

It should be noted that in my review we were very happy with the cruise duration, weather, sea conditions, destinations and the ports of call, the Baltic is a wonderful place to cruise, destinations and timing is always paramount for us, we don’t cruise for the food!

Those of you who are satisfied with the direction that Celebrity appear to be taking, then I am happy for you, however those who have enjoyed the pleasure that was cruising on Celebrity back in the 90’s then you will need to think again, sorry.

Thank you also Bundles917 for your response, I will let others judge the merits of it.

 

No offense intended, but if your experience was so terrible, why didn't you put more effort into speaking with a member of ship management to express your concern at the time when you were having such a bad experience. I'm quite certain that you may have received sufficient attention.

 

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[NLH Arizona]

The food quality is not ever exactly the same. There are so many variables involved it's not possible for every plate to be perfect. In general, the food on our recent cruises has been better than a couple of years ago. I can't imagine being so upset by a dish that I would not accept a replacement if I was not happy.

 

I also find it remarkable that this review had every area as a maximum 2 star experience. I would find it difficult to respond to something like this.

Maybe a replacement dish was not what they were looking for!

[muffin]

Our CC buddy has hit it on the nose. We all want luxury cruising for budget prices and the mass market is following our wishes. In order to do so, cuts MUST happen. Our first cruise, HAL in 1993 , a one week rtn to Vancouver Alaska trip in early June cost us $999.00a cdn. Twenty years ago, 999 was a whole lot more than today, and just look at the prices of the same cruise this summer. Yes, we got a lot of the "extras" people are missing today, but we paid for them, and the fuel cost was a huge lot less. As long as we are driven by the bottom line, we will get less. We can have the "days of yor", but we will have to ratchet it up a category in our choice of lines, and pay the price. Our choice. Marg

[Islandgirl4242]

I have sailed a number of Celebrity cruises and enjoyed every one, never have I seen problems such as the OP describes. And, in fairness, his post was about the lack of response from Celebrity, not his review of the cruise. But this is a forum, and all opinions should be welcome. I'm sure that most astute readers can sort through ALL the reviews of a ship before making a decision. Bundles, seems a little harsh to suggest that the OP sounds controlling and needs counseling, since you weren't there to really evaluate! Just saying.......

 

Well stated! I think the biggest complaint was the lack of a response and believe a call to guest relations would have produced a response to the dissatisfaction...I imagine Celebrity receives an overwhelming number of emails.

 

I wish the cruiser well in his search for a cruise line that lives up to his expectations...we all have different expectations! ~~Judy

[pris993]

I think the real problem with Celebrity is the "PR hype" does not live up to the cruise experience. At least that is what we have felt for sometimes.

 

On the positive side, we have found Celebrity did respond to comments on the critiques we completed both by mail and personal phone call after our cruise.

 

When we have issues we generally deal with them while on board and do make note of them in the critique which seems to get attention.

[Orator]

I think the real problem with Celebrity is the "PR hype" does not live up to the cruise experience. At least that is what we have felt for sometimes.

 

On the positive side, we have found Celebrity did respond to comments on the critiques we completed both by mail and personal phone call after our cruise.

 

When we have issues we generally deal with them while on board and do make note of them in the critique which seems to get attention.

 

A company hyping up their product in their PR campaign? Unbelievable!

[varoo]

We did a Baltic cruise on the Constellation about 10 years ago. I too was disappointed with the food and that was a long time ago. I wonder if it has to do with suppliers in the Baltics area.

We recently took a Baltic cruise on Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas. The food was fine.

 

On any cruise ship we occasionally get something we don't care for, but the wait staff is always happy to bring you something else instead.

 

It is no big deal. When they are serving food to a couple of thousand people every day, it would be unrealistic to expect them to get everything perfect 100% of the time.

 

That is why I do not understand someone getting upset about it or feeling "so let down I could not take up this offer" (as the OP stated), unless your mother was sitting there insisting that you must eat it all whether you like it or not. :D

 

We find the wait staff on cruise ships very eager to please.

Often if we don't finish something and leave part of it on the plate uneaten, they will ask what is wrong and offer to bring something else instead.

 

 

But I totally agree with the OP that Celebrity should have sent a timely personalized follow-up acknowledgment after the automated reply.

It makes a world of difference in the customer's perception of a company.

 

 

Just one small example:

Earlier this week I booked a hotel room at a new hotel where I have never stayed before. That evening I used their website's comment form to make a comment and immediately received the usual automated reply .

 

The very next morning I received a personalized follow-up reply from one of their representatives directly addressing the issue about which I had inquired.

I already have a very favorable impression of that hotel, even before arriving there.

 

[Cruising89143]

I just read the review and the OP lost me with their ratings. The highest was a "2". Not buying that. I have been cruising far too long to know that it is very hard for a cruise line like X to rate that low in that many areas.

 

I have no issue with anyone posting their thoughts about a cruise but by doing so they are opening themselves up to others giving feedback on the subject both good and bad. I personally found many of the complaints to be silly. IMHO the best thing for the OP to do is search out a line that would be classified in the deluxe or luxury classification and not mass market. His expectations are too high. By the way, I haven't been on a ship that has had the flaming parade of Baked Alaska in 8-10 years.

 

About X not following up. They should have but maybe they felt that it was a lost cause. Honey or vinegar? The tone of the communication can make the difference.

[wallie5446]

Finally I must say that the demographics of our fellow passengers appears to have changed a little, people dont seem to take pride in their dress standards in the main dining room as they once did, and I am sad to say that the respectful, courteous, kind and friendly fellow passengers we have met on our previous Celebrity cruises appear to be changing, I dont know what has happened to make this change, however those passengers of previous cruises appear to have moved on, and so must we.

quote]

 

They cant put a 'rabbit proof fence' on a cruise ship:D

[RickT]

While I understand the OPs comments and complaints I can also understand why Celebrity would not bother responding. In my past career I had responsibility for complaints that were beyond the capability of the front line staff. While you may not like it, when I got a complaint where absolutely everything was wrong I knew there would be no way to please the customer and calling/writing them to try and discuss it wouldn't help. Maybe that was the wrong thing to do but given the low rating of every aspect of the cruise it would seem to be an impossible task to appease the OP and no one wants to simply be the person receiving the vent.

 

Sorry you didn't enjoy your cruise. We all have a free choice in life and I believe based on your concerns and Celebrity's lack of response your only option is to move to a different cruise line. I sincerely hope you find one that suits you.

[buzzybuzzbuzz]

 

It should be noted that in my review we were very happy with the cruise duration, weather, sea conditions, destinations and the ports of call, the Baltic is a wonderful place to cruise, destinations and timing is always paramount for us, we don’t cruise for the food!

 

Whilst everyone is entitled to their opinion, I can't take this complaint seriously because of the statement quoted above. The only things the OP was happy with were outwith the cruise line's control.

1. Cruise duration - must have been known prior to embarkation

2. Weather - which cruise line can affect the weather?

3. Sea conditions - see above

4. Destinations and ports of call - again were know to the OP prior to embarkation

5. "We don't cruise for the food" - but that seems to have been the main issue.

 

I hope the OP finds a cruise line which better matches their expectation, but the review doesn't really help us decide if the ship is for us.

 

We will be touring the Baltics on Eclipse next year and it is all about the ambience on Celebrity for us.

 

The other thing I would mention is that as far as food quality is concerned, anyone who has taken a galley tour will tell you that all the supplies come from the US regardless of the ships whereabouts.

[Priya2]

I am in agreement with the OP that the minimal response should have been a more personalized email or letter stating that Celebrity was sorry the cruise did not go as expected, etc.,etc.

 

Beyond that point, I would not understand how someone could send such a rambling diatribe of a couple salient points surrounded by paragraphs of trivial complaining and expect to get anything more. Honestly, if I were a Customer Service agent and got this missive I wouldn't know where to start in responding other than a general "sorry you were not happy". I have written to companies a number of times with complaints, including to Celebrity once or twice, and have always gotten feedback - not always what I wanted to hear necessarily, but a personalized answer. it helps to get to the pertinent points and give some indication of what action you expect in return. It also helps not to get insulting (comparing the Cruise Director and his assistant to Laurel and Hardy?!?). It helps not to add implications that discrimination was involved which could only be devised by mind-reading (the implications that some of these issues were due to the OP's country of origin - seriously?!?! - why would someone jump to the assumption it was because they were Australian???) And finally, it helps to structure the letter cleanly with good grammar, spelling, and punctuation if you want to be taken seriously.

Took the words out of my mouth. I don't dismiss anyones unhappiness, but the OP comments on fellow cruisers are general and a bit insulting. I doubt he/she will be missed by by other cruisers :(

[scanditaly]

Celebrity has not yet responded to you.

 

You state in your opening rant about having some writing skills,

BUT

 

it was extremely difficult to follow your thoughts and get to the salient point. Do you know what a run-on sentence is? I strongly suggest you let someone proof-read your musings before you post them.

 

I am not saying that bad things did not happen to you; but if your speaking/orating skills are as bad as your writing skills, then it will be difficult for anyone to help you, as the problem as you see it will be obfuscated within wordy sentences that do not make sense.

 

It really was sad to see that Celebrity wanted to make a few things right for you, but you seemed to not want them to............could it be that you had other things on your mind that caused you suffering? You know, bad day at work, come home, and then kick the dog kinda stuff?

 

When we are angry at someone else, sometimes there is fear present......

[Priya2]

as far as the food goes it is my understanding that European itinary sometimes have difficulty in getting good quality ingredients - same thing happened to us on a British Iles Princess cruise.

cheap - they have to make a buck somewhere..

I note that another poster states that all food items come from the US irrespective of where the ship is cruising. However, that aside, the mind boggles as to why you think that "good quality ingredients" would not be available in Europe and the British Isles. What on earth do you think we live on? I visit the US from the UK most years and enjoy eating there. However, I have to try much harder than at home to avoid high fructose corn syrup, trans fats etc! Of course you have good food, much of it heavily influenced by food from Italy, France and the British Isles, where we do indeed have high quality ingredients in abundance!

[Jade13]

While I understand the OPs comments and complaints I can also understand why Celebrity would not bother responding. In my past career I had responsibility for complaints that were beyond the capability of the front line staff. While you may not like it, when I got a complaint where absolutely everything was wrong I knew there would be no way to please the customer and calling/writing them to try and discuss it wouldn't help. Maybe that was the wrong thing to do but given the low rating of every aspect of the cruise it would seem to be an impossible task to appease the OP and no one wants to simply be the person receiving the vent.

 

Sorry you didn't enjoy your cruise. We all have a free choice in life and I believe based on your concerns and Celebrity's lack of response your only option is to move to a different cruise line. I sincerely hope you find one that suits you.

 

My opinion is that the Op should have concentrated on 1 or 2 big issues that disappointed them, instead of naming so many.

 

If we don't like the food we just don't eat it and go somewhere else on the ship. My DH is a professional Chef, and unfortunately if the Chef can't cook (or we do not like his cooking) it won't get any better in our experience.

[Jade13]

double post