I know this is cruise critic but....

[biomedbob]

Have #87 and #88 booked. Have no experience. Oh well! :confused:

[idamae3218]

I guess the game is you have to book early. My August cruise is now a little over $1000 and I paid $770 in total which includes a $100 credit

 

You're right of course, but I booked Oasis in April, price great ($854 inside). Then BOGO in May, price started up. That's still over a year in advance. Then again, we priced Liberty, since we originally want to leave locally. It was $1600pp for inside. So, we took Oasis since even with air it was cheaper.

 

Now Liberty is "down" $1500 pp (once BOGO is applied and divided between two). With a sale it's $100 less. It's like a shell game.

[idamae3218]

Again, you wouldn't know how the service is on every ship if you haven't been on every ship. To convince someone you should have facts based on your findings and not someone else's experience that relates to yours.

 

I don't quite understand this. A brand has a standard. Of course one location may be slightly better than another, but if I pay for Hilton, I have certain expectations no matter which one it is. I would lower my expectations if I paid for, lets say, Econo Lodge.

 

I would expect the same from a cruise line. There is a minimum standard expected of it by its customers. The minimum varies between the type of line you are cruising on. Certainly I expect Crystal to have a higher standard than Royal.

 

Royal had a standard of service that kept me coming back. But, I have noticed a decline in the service (not as severe as I have read on CC) over the years. It's an across departments change, not a particular ship. From the MDR to guest services.

 

When I first joined CC, most people raved about Royal. You would get shouted down if you had a complaint. That's over. Now, most responses are chiming in with similar complaints. There's something wrong. Hopefully, they will correct the issues before it affects the bottom line, which could take a little while to see happen.

[Diver2014]

So the bait was thrown out in post #1 by someone who loves RCI and the cruise critics had a field day. Typical. Too many 'critics' consider cruising a way of life, I consider it a vacation and it probably won't be absolutely perfect. But, I really like RCI (I'm not going to say 'love it' because I like individual ships, not the whole cruise line). If someone has a legitimate complaint, that's fine but write it in a way that is not derogatory and just trashing the cruise line as a whole. Totally worthless to anyone who is trying to find out as much info as possible before choosing a cruise. It's my opinion that on the Cruise Critic forums, too many people complain about things that I wouldn't even cast a passing glance at. Do I think a lot of 'critics' are spoiled? Yes. Does it matter? No. I like to post messages for people who are contemplating a future cruise and would like some details on likes and dislikes. As a place to rant and complain, I just roll my eyes and think to myself that those people should stay home. I laugh when someone posts that they wrote a letter to the president of the cruise line with a complaint and were furious when they didn't receive a reply. But that's just me. There's nothing better than cruising. Rah, rah, rah (that's me cheerleading). :D

[JimAOk1945]

Yes, it's true the RC has raised their prices. But, I think the prices of many things have gone up. While I don't like it, I will continue to cruise on RC.

 

Personally, I haven't noticed the decline that others have mentioned. It's still a good product and delivers a nice experience. We are looking forward to our December cruise.

Edited March 14, 2015 by JimAOk1945

[CptSticky]

Maybe you are cruising too much. That what it sounds like to me. Cruising about a third of the year sounds fun, but is it really?

 

 

You know that thought has actually crossed my mind but was afraid to say something sac religious like that on CC.

[Pesseh0729]

You know that thought has actually crossed my mind but was afraid to say something sac religious like that on CC.

 

 

Lol that's the first thing that popped inside my head.

[Pesseh0729]

They must be.. In 2014, they had 5.1 million passengers paying higher fares...they are doing it right

 

 

Did they force them to pay or did they pay voluntarily?

[GonnaSailtoo]

It's all in a name; the OP's screen name and the name of this board.

RCI a has changed immensely in the past 18 years and not for the better. there is not enough a staff and they certainly don't seem as happy as they used to. They are overworked and grossly underpaid. We will continue to sail with Royal, but are seriously considering NCL for 2017....8 cabins, 6 of which we will be paying for.

 

UNHAPPY staff... absolutely right. I've been on five RCI cruises in the past five months, and I've talked to plenty of staff members. There is definitely a morale problem. Overworked and underpaid - yes - but I think there may be even more to it than that...

[COCKYMARK]

Crew staff is underpaid on all ships....have talked to some on the three lines I have cruised with it is what it is!

[idamae3218]

Crew staff is underpaid on all ships....have talked to some on the three lines I have cruised with it is what it is!

 

I respect your right to express your love for Royal, why do you seem to take joy in discounting an different point of view? You posted on another thread where the person was expressing their displeasure with Royal & you said something like " great, more run for those that love it".

 

The point was there are instances where they have cut back staff. The point was they are underpaid, which seems to be a norm, but also understaffed. It's the two together that seems to have impacted quality & service.

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Forums mobile app

[splash_in_the_water]

I got to thinking about it while out for a short mini-bike pleasure ride in this nice 38 degree weather. All these things people are complaining about , the food, the drink prices, waiter service, entertainment, fare prices. etc, and so on....These are the things that will set one cruise line apart from another and it's these little things that really make the difference and create the experience and environment so many of us have come to love, and expect. You could just say "well, they don't do that anymore but_________" all the while the little things are being cut one by one while the price of cruising goes up.

 

When does it end? The cruise lines have every right to do what they want more or less, but when will enough be enough? I'm all for being positive and still having fun with all the things there are to do, but we shouldn't make excuses for them, I feel like we should have some expectations of the quality of luxury and service they're known for.

 

But as others have said :D cruise critic is a very low % of their over all customers, so as long as they can keep past cruisers and new cruisers coming in, who knows what they'll do?

[brillohead]

But I don't care what others are saying. They can say or :rolleyes::rolleyes: all they want.

 

And if they have an opinion that is different than mine I don't consider them 'Haters', just ill informed.:D

 

I was just amazed the OP got up early this morning and just had to say it.;)

 

Believe it or not, there are jobs that aren't 9-5, Mon-Fri. :eek:

 

Depending what assignment I'm on, 6am can be near the end of my workday or the beginning of the workday or the middle of my day off, seven days a week. :p

Edited March 15, 2015 by brillohead

[keywasted100]

I think if we all look hard enough each cruise line will have the good the bad and the ugly, I like cruising because I live in FL and I can drive to several ports and jump on a ship without having to deal with airlines, limited baggage, etc. It's stress free travel and that's how I like it. Give me a drink with an umbrella and I am pretty happy. I do love Royal Caribbean As they have always provided me with the service they promised

[toxicfairy]

Wow.... judgmental much?

 

Why are YOU posting at 6:52 on a Saturday morning, DirtyDawg? Why do YOU care what others are saying?

 

:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

Ok I know this is totally irrelevant but you guys are making me laugh when the time issues come up...on a typical day I am in my car by 4:30am so to me 6:00 is sleeping in😉

On a more relevant side ...We love Royal also. I just booked for summer 2016. The prices HAVE gone up and quality down. Not so much that I'm leaving but enough to have to cruise less often and really look for a good price. My window of opportunity is small as I work in a school. I found a price I could live with and booked it for our 10 year anniversary. I do LOVE a cruise! DH has a few more under his belt than me and he has done other cruise lines. We did a HAL line cruise together but now we stay with Royal because so far they meet our needs. The one i have booked now will be number 7 for me.

[awhcruiser]

Where is the like button?

Did they force them to pay or did they pay voluntarily?

[DirtyDawg]

Believe it or not, there are jobs that aren't 9-5, Mon-Fri. :eek:

 

Sorry I haven't responded sooner, I was working.:p So, ya I believe it.:D

[Pesseh0729]

what this means I do not know

 

 

Someone said Royal increased the price on 5 million cruisers last year and I said were they forced to pay or did they pay voluntarily

[awhcruiser]

RCCL still has enough "dissatisfied" customers to keep them alive. No one is forcing you or anyone else to sail with them. Why would they change anything if they have over 5 million passengers a year?

what this means I do not know

[awhcruiser]

I wish CC had a like button!

So the bait was thrown out in post #1 by someone who loves RCI and the cruise critics had a field day. Typical. Too many 'critics' consider cruising a way of life, I consider it a vacation and it probably won't be absolutely perfect. But, I really like RCI (I'm not going to say 'love it' because I like individual ships, not the whole cruise line). If someone has a legitimate complaint, that's fine but write it in a way that is not derogatory and just trashing the cruise line as a whole. Totally worthless to anyone who is trying to find out as much info as possible before choosing a cruise. It's my opinion that on the Cruise Critic forums, too many people complain about things that I wouldn't even cast a passing glance at. Do I think a lot of 'critics' are spoiled? Yes. Does it matter? No. I like to post messages for people who are contemplating a future cruise and would like some details on likes and dislikes. As a place to rant and complain, I just roll my eyes and think to myself that those people should stay home. I laugh when someone posts that they wrote a letter to the president of the cruise line with a complaint and were furious when they didn't receive a reply. But that's just me. There's nothing better than cruising. Rah, rah, rah (that's me cheerleading). :D

[DirtyDawg]

RCCL still has enough "dissatisfied" customers to keep them alive. No one is forcing you or anyone else to sail with them. Why would they change anything if they have over 5 million passengers a year?

 

They HAD 5 million passengers a year. Blackberry HAD 15 million units sales at it's peak. Last year it was less than 2 million. Nokia was the largest smartphone brand on the planet 10 years ago. Where are they now? It's not about how RCL did in the past, it's how the recent changes will affect their future. GM was once the largest car company in the world. Did that protect them from Chapter 11? Saying that because Royal had 5 million passengers last year everything will be OK is like saying GM was too big to fail. Nothing is too big to fail. Just ask the former GM shareholders. Or Blackberry shareholders. Or Nokia shareholders, And so on and so on.

Edited March 15, 2015 by DirtyDawg

[ltjn]

For those who like creative financing schemes remember ENRON!

[COCKYMARK]

If you actually think RCL is going belly up in the future.....do take your medication....not gonna happen !

[jayblue]

I found an article in Adweek that points to their problem being the fact that they are attracting a lot of onetimers (11 million): people who, because of the innovative nature of the product, will go one time, but never return. Now, when you add the fact that in their attempt to attract these customers they change the cruise experience for the repeaters, it may be a recipe for disaster for them.

 

As much as I like the idea of DD, I am willing to admit that it may have been a mistake on their part. In this, they needed the input of their longtime customers.

Edited March 15, 2015 by jayblue

[jayblue]

If you actually think RCL is going belly up in the future.....do take your medication....not gonna happen !

 

They won't go belly up, but will lose, if they haven't already, their standing in the industry.