Find a better cruise line!!!!

[jojoanddash]

I have been on 3 cruises now 2 with Carnival & 1 with Royal Caribbean. The only reason I went with Royal Caribbean was due to the destination, we were going to Alaska from Vancouver to Seward and then we were doing land ourselves for a week and Carnival didn't offer that itinerary. My cruise started off bad the moment we walked into our room and got worse. I booked that cruise the very first day it was available and I called to make sure I was getting the room I wanted....I explained that it would be 3 adults my Mom, hubby & myself & that we needed the 2 beds put together and the SOFA bed with a balcony & I was assured that my room would be exactly what I was wanting. I spoke with Royal Caribbean representatives many times for different questions and they always reviewed what my reservation was. So I was very surprised to walk into my room and see the big bed and a chair.....so I go to the guest services desk and I am told nothing could be done until an hour or so after we set sail. REALLY???? So I explained in detail that I booked this the 1st day it was offered and what I was promised so he goes and looks and the computer and a book with a bad attitude like I was asking for him to actually do something and tells me that the other bed was in the ceiling and our cabin steward would drop it down and separate the other bed so we would all have a bed. I was very upset at this point & explained that we were all adults and we were not sleeping in a bed from the ceiling & the idiot actually said then he can try to fit a cot in there. I said NO that is not what we were promised and not what we paid for and he simply shrugs his shoulders and tells me to come back an hour or so after we set sail. So I go tell my Mom & hubby & told them I was going to get on the website to try to get something done. While I was on the computer my Mom went down & tried to talk to them since I was so upset she thought I might have been rude and that was why I wasn't getting any help & she came back ticked off & said that there was several people complaining about their rooms being wrong too. So when I finished emailing Royal Caribbean a woman (another cruiser) asked me what was wrong so I told her and she told me the chair made a bed and how to do it....so I got better customer service from another guest. I was at guest services another time getting some pamphlets and I asked the guy which side of the ship would we see the most land and his response was "you will only see land when we port the rest of the time we will be in open waters" REALLY??? I have never been on an Alaskan cruise and knew that was wrong. We had a couple other issues with them and the people at guest services (they are called employees but none of the new the answers to anything so the guests on the ship could have done a better job) they always gave us the wrong info or just said I don't know and pretty much moved to the next guest. Our room steward Jeff and our waiter Rajesh and waitress Marian were the only employees we really enjoyed and had any confidence in at all. The some of the food may have been a little better but there was not as much variety offered and on elegant nights on the Carnival you got steak & lobster but on Royal Caribbean you had to pay extra for that & the desserts were way better on Carnival. Now lets talk about entertainment or lack there of....Carnival beats Royal Caribbean a million to one blind folded and hands tied behind their back. Some shows were soooo bad that we had to leave and one show the singing was soooo horrible it really did hurt my ears it was worse than nails across the chalk board, costumes were very generic and at times didn't even go with what was going on. We missed the comedy club every night like Carnival has. They had 3 so called comedians that I really felt sorry for because it was like dead silence and then someone would give them a fake pity laugh and one looked like he was 80 years old and drunk most the time I couldn't understand half of what he was saying and what I did understand didn't make any sense. If it wasn't for the spa I don't think we would have enjoyed much of the cruise (but I had to pay extra for the use of the thermal suite which it was ok but it wasn't all that). I did like the adults only pool and Jacuzzi that was open 24 hours but a lot of times there were kids and teens in there too. I never take naps unless I am sick but I think I took more naps on this cruise than I have my whole life just because there was nothing to do if you wasn't a drinker. My favorite entertainment was to go out where the glass elevators are and watch the drunks trying to dance in the center....sad huh? So yeah I could keep going but I am just going to say that from now on we will be sticking with Carnival unless I have my heart set on a destination that they don't go too and then I will think long and hard about that!!! Oh and 1 final thing I still haven't heard anything from Royal Caribbean about the poor customer service. I have sent 2 emails and took 2 surveys and all I have received is on of the surveys asking about how my complaint was handled....I was honest and told them is wasn't as of that date and still nothing. Now this may be just 1 cruise or a bad crew but first impressions are everything and theirs was a horrible first impression on all of us. I have even asked my hubby & Mom and they say the same things as me and my husband told me he will never go on any cruise with RC again I would have to go by myself lol and my hubby is very easy going and doesn't get upset hardly ever and he was not pleased at all.

[uncwmark]

So, to be clear, you're upset because you didn't realize that you had the exact kind of room you had requested? A room with two beds and a converting sleeper chair/couch? I'm confused?

 

Enjoy Carnival...

[gelli8112]

I'm sorry you had a bad experience on Royal Caribbean and I sincerely hope you sail our favorite cruise line again. I've taken several cruises with Royal Caribbean and I've never experienced anything except exceptional service. Should you decide to give RCI another opportunity, I'm sure Royal will become your favorite line. If not, we wish you happy travels and we'll try not frown at the whale tail when we pass your ship at sea. Happy cruising.

[Spurschick]

Sorry you didn't enjoy your cruise.

 

You did not clarify if the "chair" was the blue sofa that turned into a bed or what cabin you were sailing in. RC website clearly states which cabins have sofa beds or pull down beds. Did you book through a TA or direct? A good TA will always be able to advise you properly. If in doubt come here first and ask, there are plenty of people that would have assisted with the sofa bed issue.

 

With respect to views, when we start getting into places we want to see we go out on deck to work out the best views and vantage points.

 

It sounds like carnival are more to your liking. Entertainment is subjective to individuals likes. There are days we struggle to fit everything in, others where we make our own entertainment. But if I went for the view I wouldn't be napping:rolleyes:

[DonnaK]

Just to be clear: You do NOT have to pay extra for lobster or steak on RCI.

 

Yes, they offer the specialty restaurant versions of these items on the MDR menu for an upcharge.

 

However, you can get steak and lobster tails "included", just as you get on Carnival and all the other mainstream cruiselines.

[rubrrick]

I'm sorry that you didn't enjoy your cruise, but to be honest.......I quit reading about a third of thewaythoughbecacuseyou didn't paragraphit.

 

I'd love to know the real reason that you are unhappy. Sounds like what you booked, you received.

 

Rick

[MichaelCMTX]

Kinda the equivalent of a Jimmy Buffett fan going to a Bruce Springsteen fans' forum with a long rant about how the one time they saw Springsteen, it stunk for many reasons, but included among them because it wasn't a Jimmy Buffett show.

Edited July 9, 2014 by MichaelCMTX

[Merion_Mom]

This teacher has thoroughly edited the OP.

 

 

I have been on 3 cruises now: 2 with Carnival & 1 with Royal Caribbean. The only reason I went with Royal Caribbean was due to the destination. We were going to Alaska from Vancouver to Seward and then we were doing land ourselves for a week and Carnival didn't offer that itinerary.

 

 

My cruise started off bad the moment we walked into our room and got worse. I booked that cruise the very first day it was available and I called to make sure I was getting the room I wanted....I explained that it would be 3 adults my Mom, hubby & myself & that we needed the 2 beds put together and the SOFA bed with a balcony & I was assured that my room would be exactly what I was wanting.

 

 

I spoke with Royal Caribbean representatives many times for different questions and they always reviewed what my reservation was. So I was very surprised to walk into my room and see the big bed and a chair.....so I go to the guest services desk and I am told nothing could be done until an hour or so after we set sail. REALLY???? So I explained in detail that I booked this the 1st day it was offered and what I was promised so he goes and looks in the computer and a book with a bad attitude like I was asking for him to actually do something and tells me that the other bed was in the ceiling and our cabin steward would drop it down and separate the other bed so we would all have a bed.

 

 

I was very upset at this point & explained that we were all adults and we were not sleeping in a bed from the ceiling & the idiot actually said then he can try to fit a cot in there. I said NO that is not what we were promised and not what we paid for and he simply shrugs his shoulders and tells me to come back an hour or so after we set sail.

 

 

So I go tell my Mom & hubby & tell them I was going to get on the website to try to get something done. While I was on the computer my Mom went down & tried to talk to them since I was so upset she thought I might have been rude and that was why I wasn't getting any help & she came back ticked off & said that there was several people complaining about their rooms being wrong too.

 

 

So when I finished emailing Royal Caribbean a woman (another cruiser) asked me what was wrong so I told her and she told me the chair made a bed and how to do it....so I got better customer service from another guest.

 

 

I was at guest services another time getting some pamphlets and I asked the guy which side of the ship would we see the most land and his response was "you will only see land when we port the rest of the time we will be in open waters".

 

 

REALLY??? I have never been on an Alaskan cruise and knew that was wrong.

 

 

We had a couple other issues with them and the people at guest services (they are called employees but none of them knew the answers to anything so the guests on the ship could have done a better job) always gave us the wrong info or just said I don't know and pretty much moved to the next guest.

 

 

Our room steward Jeff and our waiter Rajesh and waitress Marian were the only employees we really enjoyed and had any confidence in at all. Some of the food may have been a little better but there was not as much variety offered and on elegant nights on Carnival you got steak & lobster but on Royal Caribbean you had to pay extra for that & the desserts were way better on Carnival.

 

 

Now lets talk about entertainment or lack thereof....Carnival beats Royal Caribbean a million to one blind folded and hands tied behind their back.

 

 

Some shows were soooo bad that we had to leave and one show the singing was soooo horrible it really did hurt my ears. It was worse than nails across the chalkboard, costumes were very generic and at times didn't even go with what was going on.

 

 

We missed the comedy club every night like Carnival has. They had 3 so-called comedians that I really felt sorry for because it was like dead silence and then someone would give them a fake pity laugh and one looked like he was 80 years old and drunk most the time. I couldn't understand half of what he was saying and what I did understand didn't make any sense.

 

 

If it wasn't for the spa I don't think we would have enjoyed much of the cruise (but I had to pay extra for the use of the thermal suite which it was ok but it wasn't all that).

 

 

I did like the adults only pool and Jacuzzi that was open 24 hours but a lot of times there were kids and teens in there too.

 

 

I never take naps unless I am sick but I think I took more naps on this cruise than I have my whole life just because there was nothing to do if you weren't a drinker. My favorite entertainment was to go out where the glass elevators are and watch the drunks trying to dance in the center....sad huh?

 

 

So yeah I could keep going but I am just going to say that from now on we will be sticking with Carnival unless I have my heart set on a destination that they don't go to and then I will think long and hard about that!!!

 

 

Oh and 1 final thing. I still haven't heard anything from Royal Caribbean about the poor customer service. I have sent 2 emails and took 2 surveys and all I have received is one of the surveys asking about how my complaint was handled....I was honest and told them it wasn't as of that date and still nothing.

 

 

Now this may be just 1 cruise or a bad crew but first impressions are everything and theirs was a horrible first impression on all of us. I have even asked my hubby & Mom and they say the same things as me and my husband told me he will never go on any cruise with RC again. I would have to go by myself lol and my hubby is very easy going and doesn't get upset hardly ever and he was not pleased at all.

Edited July 9, 2014 by Merion_Mom

[Langley Cruisers]

Thanks to Merion_Mom, I was able to read the OP's post.

 

~

 

Sorry you didn't enjoy your cruise. Sounds like you have already made up your mind about future cruises and that's fine. One line does not suit everyone, and that's why I'm so glad we have a choice.

.

[matj2000]

If this post was about how great RC was everyone would be giving high praise for a positive report.

But since it is a negative report, everyone just wants to condemn her punctuation & dismiss the problems as trivial.

 

How Typical for this site. (but not everyone)

Edited July 9, 2014 by matj2000

[jojoanddash]

yes I know you can see which rooms are suppose to have a sofa bed & I checked there as well as called RC to make sure. She slept on the chair bed but in the picture on the website it was a sofa not a chair. For those upset about some paragraphs sorry you can't read, I have no problem reading it. Those that can't understand why we were upset it boils down to very bad customer service. Is this simple enough?;)

[leaveitallbehind]

Impossible, and not worth trying, to sort through the endless run on to read the post. Just scanned through the responses to confirm what I expected as nothing more than an over drawn out rant. (Even with the wonderful effort by Merion_Mom to make it more intelligible, it wasn't worth going through - but thank's anyway M_M!)

 

So the bottom line is enjoy your future non-RCI cruises! :)

Edited July 9, 2014 by leaveitallbehind

[Merion_Mom]

Had the customer service been better even if they contacted me afterwards and at least tried to fix it in any way I would not be so upset to the point that I am not going to cruise with them again. I am not expecting ANYTHING at all because they have proved to me they do not care about their guests. Several people have told me they have complained and are still waiting for response some have been waiting for more than 5 years so yeah I don't see anything from them at all.:eek:

 

Exactly WHAT is it that you are complaining about?

 

Your boredom on a cruise to Alaska?

 

Your finding other people in the whirlpools?

 

The non-funny comedians? All three of them?

 

:confused:

 

:confused:

 

:confused:

[Merion_Mom]

Had the customer service been better even if they contacted me afterwards and at least tried to fix it in any way I would not be so upset to the point that I am not going to cruise with them again. I am not expecting ANYTHING at all because they have proved to me they do not care about their guests. Several people have told me they have complained and are still waiting for response some have been waiting for more than 5 years so yeah I don't see anything from them at all.:eek:

 

So, although you never stated this in the original post, apparently you were on the Radiance? One of Royal Caribbean's most beautiful ships, without a bit of purple or hot pink in sight?

 

Would you please share your cabin number, so that we can understand better?

[LissyTx]

Jojoanddash - Thank you for mentioning the chair sleeper. You are the second person to mention this in the past few weeks and have reminded me as I'm trying to book a cruise for 3 that I need to be very careful of this!

 

Hope you at least get some acknowledgement from RC in response to your emails. I will share that I've emailed them about positive things and still took 3 weeks to get a response. I honestly think they don't have their email / online communication methods staffed appropriately.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jojoanddash]

So, although you never stated this in the original post, apparently you were on the Radiance? One of Royal Caribbean's most beautiful ships, without a bit of purple or hot pink in sight?

 

Would you please share your cabin number, so that we can understand better?

 

ok what does purple and pink have to do with anything? Yeah it was an okay ship as far as looks I wouldn't say it is one of the most beautiful but that is just my opinion and everyone has one. Just to clarify for you I am not complaining about what the ship looks like I am upset with the lack of customer service and the fact that the employees they have at guest services didn't have any knowledge of the ship or anything they were asked about for that matter and we were not the only ones that had these issues.

[jojoanddash]

Jojoanddash - Thank you for mentioning the chair sleeper. You are the second person to mention this in the past few weeks and have reminded me as I'm trying to book a cruise for 3 that I need to be very careful of this!

 

Hope you at least get some acknowledgement from RC in response to your emails. I will share that I've emailed them about positive things and still took 3 weeks to get a response. I honestly think they don't have their email / online communication methods staffed appropriately.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Yes be very careful of this but I thought I had clarified our needs every time I spoke to someone about our cruise and I still ended up with the crappy chair bed. Just a hint if you do get stuck with it make the room steward get the mattress down from the "ceiling bed" as guest services called it. It still wasn't very comfy but it made it a little better.

[Merion_Mom]

ok what does purple and pink have to do with anything? Yeah it was an okay ship as far as looks I wouldn't say it is one of the most beautiful but that is just my opinion and everyone has one. Just to clarify for you I am not complaining about what the ship looks like I am upset with the lack of customer service and the fact that the employees they have at guest services didn't have any knowledge of the ship or anything they were asked about for that matter and we were not the only ones that had these issues.

 

So you are not going to share your cabin number with us? At least to help out other cruisers, since you clearly believe that it is an inferior cabin?

[jojoanddash]

So you are not going to share your cabin number with us? At least to help out other cruisers, since you clearly believe that it is an inferior cabin?

 

I will post it when I can get the papers hubby is sleeping. So you are not going to share what the purple & pink has to do with anything?

[jojoanddash]

7566 was our cabin number

[Merion_Mom]

7566 was our cabin number

 

The deck plans on Royal Caribbean's website clearly show that your cabin should have had a sofabed.

 

You have every right to be annoyed about that.

 

The rest............subjective.

 

But I, too, would be very unhappy if it did not have a SOFAbed in it.

 

Certainly, if your cruise started out on that sour note, it infected the rest of your cruise.

 

I sincerely think that you should try to clear your mind and give Royal Caribbean another chance.

 

I wish you happy sailings on whatever future trips you take.

 

:)

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Thanks to Merion_Mom, I was able to read the OP's post.

 

~

 

Sorry you didn't enjoy your cruise. Sounds like you have already made up your mind about future cruises and that's fine. One line does not suit everyone, and that's why I'm so glad we have a choice.

.

 

sounds like she made up her mind before she even got on the ship.

 

Bored, took naps every day? You were in Alaska with only one day at sea.

 

CCL has 3 nights of shows, with passenger karaoke, The Newlywed game and Hasbro the game show. They also have the comedians which are usually good.

 

If you find that better than RCI's entertainment more power to you.

 

The only thing i agree with is the desserts but you had your mind made up before the cruise even set sail.

 

I am Platinum with CCL so I am not a loyal Royal but like to be factual and fair.

 

Bill

[MJDMV]

Dear OP,

You've made the great mistake of criticising Royal: this is forbidden, regardless of how valid your perception is!!! I am actually embarrassed by one or two of the responses you have received - let's face it, by their very nature reviews are subjective and it seems you had genuine problems but some people are too quick to dismiss because they know better! I've been on 50+ cruises with RC and generally speaking Guest Services' Staff are pleasant but sadly, unhelpful and sometimes lack the knowledge to help.

Anyway, thanks for your views. And to my colleagues, yes I can spell and punctuate but it doesn't mean I'm always right!!

[Hoopster95]

7566 was our cabin number

 

Thank you for sharing your story.

 

"Stateroom with sofa bed and third Pullman bed available. For sofa bed configuration call your Travel Agent or Royal Caribbean International"

 

I just noticed this fine print... This is a garbage disclaimer imho on the deck plan for this stateroom. How can anyone expect a chair pull-out when it clearly says sofabed... twice! And OP re-confirmed several times with RCL pre-cruise. Like several others who have responded, I don't think you came across with your legitimate problem very well. I am only assuming, but I can only guess that in the heat of the moment the staff on board did not do very well with your aggression either? I have empathy for you.

 

Personally, I too would've been upset for my family if I was led to believe this room had a sofa bed, which I again assume is important for the comfort of your family member for 7 days. I've never heard of a "chair" that folds out as a sleeper... learn something new about RCL everyday it seems no matter how often you cruise. In a recent issue I had, my resolution came after emailing the CL directly from the ship!!! to get the right answer... the RCL site was then magically updated a couple of days after that scenario occured (wrong square footage in J room on Legend on RCL website... some of you may remember my thread about that). The RCL website is not the bible, and when everyone tells you the same re-assurance that what you're buying is correct, they can only go by the data that is in front of them, even when they don't know it's incorrect. This is a higher level issue imho.

 

The food/entertainment/etc is another topic. It's truly too bad this is how you came away from that cruise, truly it is. There's a HUGE number of very happy and loyal RCL cruisers, me being one of them, so I don't think this happens very often... very unfortunate.

 

I would love for you to try a Caribbean cruise perhaps on one of the flagships Oasis or Allure before you write off RCL forever. Whatever you decide, happy cruusing to you with all your future vacations! :D

[LindaO]

On my last cruise a very irate man was getting into the elevator with me.... ranting and raving -- he wanted to know where the roll-aways were. We just got to our cabins...and he was heading to Guest Services. He said that he booked a cabin for 4 and the roll aways were no where in sight. His cabin steward was refusing to get them. I said... the 3rd and 4th bed will come down from the ceiling.... He said BS and headed to Guest Services. I got off on the same deck and watched him rant and rave while I walked by. He had yet to get to the desk (sort of a long line). Coming back... we were in the same elevator heading back to our cabins. He told me that Guest Services said the beds come out of the ceiling... but he was sure we were playing a horrible practical joke... he was heading back to gather up his family and get off the ship. He was going to sue everyone and I should stay out of his way... which I did. After the muster... we ended up in the same elevator... where he apologized and begged forgiveness. His daughter told me that when he got back to the cabin the beds were down from the ceiling...and she and her brother had made themselves at home! I told him there was nothing to forgive... that cruise ships aren't hotels and they can take a little getting used to. But I suggested he go back to guest service and offer an apology, which he did. Needless to say... they had a great cruise and we laughed about it a good bit before the week was up.

 

With all that said.... Rushing down to Guest Services prior to the muster... when they are dealing with huge numbers of questions and concerns of guests... demanding something that you already had.... was probably not the best way to start your cruise. I believe that the 'chair' you speak of... is actually the sofa (yep that two cushion thing is a sofa. But it did work well for you didn't it. So you talked to someone that either didn't understand you and may have offered incorrect information. But really... it ruined your cruise? It ruined your cruise because he asked you to wait until they were sailing about an hour to come up with a solution?

 

Not enough to do? Maybe it just wasn't what you wanted to do. I enjoy taking a nap in the afternoon, so I can stay up late! Someone told you that you couldn't see land from both sides of the ship? But you already knew this was wrong? Why ask?

 

I could go on an on...

 

It is obvious to me that you had no intention of 'liking' RCI... but rather you wanted the itinerary and would have rather been on Carnival. So you 'settled' for Royal... but you don't have to do that again... simple solution... never ever cruise Royal again. You want what from Royal... to admit you received poor customer service... because you were asked to wait an hour and a crew member didn't tell you what side of the ship to see land... (still not sure how you couldn't figure that one out on your own) . Sorry... you get no sympathy here.

 

Oh.. and I believe the perception is that Carnival's general decorating color scheme is pink and purple.... not something we Fans of RCI consider a great choice.

 

I think you should post this on the Carnival board..... you'll get more sympathy... I hope you enjoy your future Carnival Cruises. But... if you decide to cruise RCI again... please remember... life is a lot easier if you figure out how to just adjust the sails!