Roll Call Activity

[2ferfun]

Maybe people don't want to get too involved and have their cruise planned out by other people. Such as excursions or being obligated to be some where and not really wanting to be there. I did participate (sort of) on a roll call activity that you took control of. Roll calls I have found are not for me, I may pop in and say that we're on the same cruise, but that's about it. Some may be a bit too pushy.

 

It seems silly to me to feel "pushed" into anything on a cruise. Participate in whatever you want, ignore whatever else you don't want. You're on a cruise! You should do exactly what you want!:)

 

To the OP: Many of us on CC are not good at organizing or leading things but we love to join in when others do. Please don't stop! If you enjoy setting up a website for the roll call, that makes it so much better for those of us who dont know how to do that! And its people like you that really get a roll call going and active so keep it up!;)

[elliair]

It seems silly to me to feel "pushed" into anything on a cruise. Participate in whatever you want, ignore whatever else you don't want. You're on a cruise! You should do exactly what you want!:)

 

To the OP: Many of us on CC are not good at organizing or leading things but we love to join in when others do. Please don't stop! If you enjoy setting up a website for the roll call, that makes it so much better for those of us who dont know how to do that! And its people like you that really get a roll call going and active so keep it up!;)

 

And we do what we want to do. We don't need a "leader" to steer us in any one direction. Attending this and that and signing up for being in charge of this and that. If people want to do that fine, but there's some of us that just want to say hi, we're along for the ride and no strings attached. Seems reasonable to me.:rolleyes:

[caribill]

Active roll calls can be useful in setting up activities that many are interested in and of course, nobody is forced to attend.

 

Two that come to mind from past cruises:

 

o A session was set up where someone experienced in using a Kindle held a Q&A session about how to use many of its features.

 

o After a number of roll call members indicated they either planned to do a river cruise in China or had in the past, a session was set up (and Princess reserved a venue) where those who wanted to do that cruise could do one-on-one Q&A with people who had already done it.

 

Both of these were well attended.

[shredie]

And we do what we want to do. We don't need a "leader" to steer us in any one direction. Attending this and that and signing up for being in charge of this and that. If people want to do that fine, but there's some of us that just want to say hi, we're along for the ride and no strings attached. Seems reasonable to me.:rolleyes:

 

Some people like to have a "leader" who can take charge and get things organized. Some people don't. You are certainly welcome to drop in and say hi, but aren't the people who like the leader entitled to be led? This subject seems to hit a nerve with some people, I guess.

[dorisis]

I am booked on 3 cruise for this years and 1 for next year. The only 1 with much activity is the 1 for next year.

[RetiredNTraveling]

In previous years we had many conversations going and many planned activities by this time. So far we have no volunteers for coordinators and not a single person but me showing any interest in anything. We haven't had that problem on our future cruise to Hawaii/Tahiti! There was immediate rush of interest, but now it has slowed down and becoming a moderate pace.

 

Is this just a bad year with low turnout? How can I stir interest in at least a Meet and Greet?

 

Keep up the work because there are those that do appreciate your work! ;)

 

We are just,

RetiredNTraveling!(Mike & Betty)

[elliair]

Some people like to have a "leader" who can take charge and get things organized. Some people don't. You are certainly welcome to drop in and say hi, but aren't the people who like the leader entitled to be led? This subject seems to hit a nerve with some people, I guess.

 

 

Everyone is entitled to be "led" and everyone is entitled not to follow or be coaxed. Now for all future cruises, we probably won't join the roll call. We've met so many nice people on our cruises and have remained in touch with them. Most of them have never heard of cruise critic and we've sent many people that we've met to this site. I like remaining anonymous.;)

[san diego sue]

I am on B2B roll calls for Dec. Really dead. I hesitate to step up to do the M&G because of the poor responses. I only step up if no one else wants to do it and there is lots of people wanting to participate .

There have been a couple of people canceling after complaining what a dead roll call it is .

Leaving for Alaska next month, same thing, no M&G set up. I just booked the cruise and although people are chatting, nothing set up, not even at sailaway.

In all the years I have been a member of CC, this is the first time I have had dud roll calls. We always look forward to meeting new people on our roll calls.

Denmarks, we have been on Hawaii cruises with you and loved your

website that you set up for our roll calls.

[Garfunkel]

I'm disappointed the Princess roll calls are no longer on Facebook. I use FB a lot, and it used to be so easy to join and make posts to the roll call. Incidentally, being added to a roll call list is not the same as being added to a meet and greet, is it? I was on a roll call last year, and it was assumed that we were going to a meet and greet, which we never once said we wanted to do. I just like joining in the roll call conversations, as it's helpful knowing what excursions to take etc.

 

Sue

[Shogun]

Hi All

Being on a roll call does not mean that you are going to a meet and greet want to share tours take part in a slot pull or cabin crawl.

 

Many folks are more than happy to chat to fellow cruisers get info about the ship the ports etc

 

Now l have cancelled one cruise because of my fellow passengers reason being they were taking over my cruise you must have diner do this tour come for drinks etc. It got to the point that l was getting e mails from folks complaining that l was doing somebody's else tour and not theirs.

 

Yours Shogun

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Forums mobile app

[Northender]

Hi All

Being on a roll call does not mean that you are going to a meet and greet want to share tours take part in a slot pull or cabin crawl.

 

Many folks are more than happy to chat to fellow cruisers get info about the ship the ports etc

 

Now l have cancelled one cruise because of my fellow passengers reason being they were taking over my cruise you must have diner do this tour come for drinks etc. It got to the point that l was getting e mails from folks complaining that l was doing somebody's else tour and not theirs.

 

Yours Shogun

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Forums mobile app

 

I know you are not kidding but I have to say "Are you kidding me?" Wow.

 

Our next scheduled cruise (so far) is to Hawaii. It is 40+ weeks away and the roll call has less than 20 participants so far. Some are chatty, others very rarely post. Right now I figure it is too far away and will pick up the closer we get.

 

Our excursions are booked.

 

There has been a little discussion about doing a list and sail-a-way.

 

Garfunkel, I don't think just because you joined the roll call should be an

assumption that you would attend a M&G. JMHO

 

Denmarks, I tried to take a look at your website after you posted that you were going to shut it down. That was pretty quick. LOL;)

[Shogun]

Hi northender

 

After l got the third e mail complaining about things the fun had gone out of the cruise for me.

While very nice to be asked to join a tour for another to send an e mail moaning about the fact l had decided not to do theirs is just not right.

 

Yours Shogun

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Forums mobile app

[timetobook]

Denmarks...take a look at the Pacific Princess Anniversary cruise for

December 3, 2015....841 have posted and 12,822 views this morning:eek:

I think those folks would really appreciate all your time and effort.

[shredie]

Denmarks...take a look at the Pacific Princess Anniversary cruise for

December 3, 2015....841 have posted and 12,822 views this morning:eek:

I think those folks would really appreciate all your time and effort.

 

Best roll call ever! :) Yay us! ;) I think this one is unusual because it's a special cruise (50th anniversary) with lots of CC members on board. I thing the initial Royal one was about the same. I'm also on one for Alaska this summer, and it has been very helpful for info about kids. We're taking the grandchildren for the first time, and I was woefully ignorant about all the kid stuff on Princess.

Edited June 11, 2014 by shredie

[tarheelmjfan]

The second, which is on another cruise line, is a disaster. It was started by a small group that traveled together recently. They dominate the roll call. They respond to each other but rarely to those outside of their group. And now they are beginning to wonder why no one but them is posting!

 

 

We experienced this same scenario on a roll call for a different cruise line. The original group ganged up on everyone who didn't want to do things their way. One guy was the "organizer" & took it upon himself to dictate where we were allowed to post information or questions. The main roll call was to be used for non-cruise related chit-chat only. There were subcategories that we were told we must post in. They had their organizers already established. Any others who were interested in organizing activities were told it was already taken care of. The "organizer" ran several people off that a few of us tried to defend. The rest of the group defended his behavior, so getting people outside their group to stay was almost impossible. Eventually, they ran us off too. We canceled that cruise, because I honestly had no interest in sharing a ship with some of them for 14 days. IMO, it's good to have one or more people who want to organize activities. They should be organizers only. They shouldn't be dictating anything. People should feel free to post what & where they want as long as it's not rude or derogatory.

[Colo Cruiser]

We experienced this same scenario on a roll call for a different cruise line. The original group ganged up on everyone who didn't want to do things their way. One guy was the "organizer" & took it upon himself to dictate where we were allowed to post information or questions. The main roll call was to be used for non-cruise related chit-chat only. There were subcategories that we were told we must post in. They had their organizers already established. Any others who were interested in organizing activities were told it was already taken care of. The "organizer" ran several people off that a few of us tried to defend. The rest of the group defended his behavior, so getting people outside their group to stay was almost impossible. Eventually, they ran us off too. We canceled that cruise, because I honestly had no interest in sharing a ship with some of them for 14 days. IMO, it's good to have one or more people who want to organize activities. They should be organizers only. They shouldn't be dictating anything. People should feel free to post what & where they want as long as it's not rude or derogatory.

 

 

Wow!

 

People are also real brave when they are behind a puter screen too.

Brings out the bully in people way too often. :rolleyes:

[yyjguy]

Roll calls are becoming like elementary schools with silly activities, rather than a place to meet and share ideas.

[Shogun]

Hi All

 

Had a look at the viewing count for my b2b cruise

 

First 15,000 second 117

 

Yours Shogun

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Forums mobile app

[jrzebird]

Hi All

 

Had a look at the viewing count for my b2b cruise

 

First 15,000 second 117

 

Yours Shogun

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Forums mobile app

 

I just checked my roll call for the Royal repo in October and we have almost 46,000 views and over 3,100 posts. This has been a VERY active roll call. It has gotten a bit out of hand a few times, but we are now back on track and all friendly again. If I were going to cancel a cruise because of some people on Rol Call, this probably would have been the one. However, since only about 2% of the passengers are CC, there is no reason for me to do that. I just go about my day and they no longer exist in my life. I'm not going to let a few people chase me out of a cruise.

 

One thing I found out about roll calls is that they can be our lifeline. I was on the Sandy repo cruise and the Bermuda turned to Boston cruise before the repo. Those who were still in New York or trying to get there to board for the repo posted a lot on CC. It was one way we were able to keep up with things going on at home, and often, on the ship! I was also on the Irene cruise the year before. Not as much info there, but still it was a lifeline.

 

I've made wonderful and lasting friendships from CC and I cherish them. I am a solo sailor and it is wonderful to have made friends before I even step onto the ship. I've also had roll calls that were so dead I wondered if anyone was sailing. I think in this case, the roll call is so busy because it's a cruise a lot of people repeat year after year, so there are a lot of folks making their 4, 5 or 6th repo. More like a reunion! It's tough to remember there are others on the board who aren't part of the repeaters.

 

Maureen

[shamda]

I used to enjoy the roll calls and meet and greets until I sailed on the Allure of the Seas a couple of years ago. A group here called the Critters or something like that just took over everything. If you were not a Critter you did not count. That was it for me. No more. They had self appointed officers. The captain or whatever she called herself wore captains stripes all week long showing off that she was in charge. Who needs that? They totally took over the meet and greet and even had presentations of gifts to one another excluding everyone else. Never felt so excluded. I thought the point of roll calls and meet and greets was to get to know fellow passengers. Never again. I would think many of the roll calls are not as active for the same reason.

 

 

 

I have been a member of CC for the last 10 years and have been on many roll calls as we are frequent cruisers. I am on two roll calls at this time. One, on the Emerald Princess, is what I would describe as a healthy roll call. There is even participation from all and we now have over 100 members. No one dominates this roll call.

 

The second, which is on another cruise line, is a disaster. It was started by a small group that traveled together recently. They dominate the roll call. They respond to each other but rarely to those outside of their group. And now they are beginning to wonder why no one but them is posting!

 

It disturbs me when one takes over as the self appointed leader, that is not what I want from a group. I like even give and take from all.

Edited June 14, 2014 by shamda

[crawford]

For those of us who are organizing/participating in Roll Calls, I found this to be a very informative, thought-provoking (albeit old) thread.

 

We don't have a very active Roll Call for the Sapphire Princess to Southeast Asia starting on December 8th. I have been trying to put together some tours for people to join and set up a separate website for quick reference, as well. While I'm not "pushy" or a Webmaster by any means, the posts here outlined very well for me, that the dynamics on any cruise can be just as varied as the direction of the wind. Bottom line, I hope my posts help people and will continue to be an active participant. CruiseCritic has proven invaluable for me and appreciate everything I have been able to learn on these boards!

[PoohUnderstands]

I guess I have been lucky with my roll calls. On cruises where I am going just to get away, the activity is limited but that is ok. On our big and longer cruises (like NE/Canada and N.Baltic/TA) I have been very fortunate with my roll call mates, even making new friends that will make those cruises so much more fun! But the ones mentioned from long ago sound like nightmares!

 

Pooh

[XBGuy]

I'm really glad I opened this conversations. There have been some very interesting insights, and some surprising stories. I would like to thank everybody for their contributions.

 

To the OP, each roll call is different. It's as simple as that.

 

I'm on three roll calls right now. Two of them, for 2019 cruises, have practically no activity at all. Only recently, a couple posters have tried to generate activity on the roll call for our cruise in December. We'll see what happens.

 

FWIW, I think the best M&G in which I participated was a "let's just get together at the Outrigger Bar right after the muster drill." In that one, it was clear that the people who attended just wanted to meet, chat, and enjoy each other for an hour, or so.

[bighairtexan]

I"m on 4 r/c's. 2 Celebrity, 1 Princess and 1 RCI. None of them are very active. In the past we had roll calls that even had to be closed down by Cruise Critic and a new one started b/c they got too long. Now it's mostly crickets. Very little excursion planning on any of them.

I do think part of it is alternative options for getting groups together on other social media outlets. There's less censorship and sometimes it's just "easier."

 

TARHEEL I had a VERY similar situation on a Celebrity Trans Atlantic. People were being suspended right and left. Actual physical threats were issues. It was SO UNCOMFORTABLE for the rest of us that many of us went to other roll call outlets and many of us cancelled completely.

 

HOWEVER to Cruise Critic's credit, the hosts did 'stop by' a few times. First to effectively say "play nicely, children" and to tell people that CC was a SOCIAL website and if people didn't like what they felt was "chit chat" they were free to skip those posts.

 

I used to think the longer the cruise the more active the R/C tended to be? But this doesn't seem to be the case currently amongst my 4 rollcalls. Some of them do have "off Cruise Critic" activity but I'm too lazy to invest my time in more than one place for the same cruise.

Maybe super active CC roll calls are no longer relevant? **SHRUG**

[BlueRiband]

....FWIW, I think the best M&G in which I participated was a "let's just get together at the Outrigger Bar right after the muster drill." In that one, it was clear that the people who attended just wanted to meet, chat, and enjoy each other for an hour, or so.

 

That's my idea of a good M&G too - to meet fellow CC members for an hour or so and not be expected to commit to an afternoon of "superorganizer" let activities like senior officer talks, slot pulls and cabin crawls. (At this point somebody will jump in an say, "You don't have to take part in everthing!" Yeah right - and become the party pooper who is spoiling the fun.) Although they are not supposed to do so, some organizers nonetheless set up Facebook groups. Anybody who isn't on that media platform is shut out and will never see the M&G time and place.

 

To address the practice mentioned by the 2014 OP, I wouldn't sign up on somebody's personal web site - or rejoin Facebook - just to participate in a roll call. There's no real reason to organize a CC M&G on a platform other than the CC Roll Call unless the organizer is doing something that the terms here won't allow.

Edited July 5, 2018 by BlueRiband