Platinums - Regret Having Future Bookings With CCL?

[StolidCruiser]

 

19 hours ago, Lottacruises said:

 

The new thing is the waiters in the mdr try to push drinks on you. The waiters... and the shot guy.... between them, the 2 photo sessions per night, the maitre d pleading for high ratings, telling us about the shows coming up (wow) they're even ruining the dining experience. I like to get away for an hour or so, but it's not the case anymore.

 

To no one in particular, yes I know how it was on your cruise on the ________. I'm telling you about my experience in the last few weeks on a couple of ships.

 

49 minutes ago, Theosprey247 said:

That isn’t new way back 2013 they were pushing shots and what not. 

 

This has been typical behavior in the Carnival MDR even further back than 2013.  Apparently, some are only recently impacted by it.

 

 

[Organized Chaos]

Every now and again, I see people say that their one bad cruise caused them to give up on Carnival completely. Personally, it'll take more than one bad cruise to chase me away because there's always a chance that it was a fluke. Not to mention the fact that, after reading about countless experiences that cruisers have had across the entire fleet, it's become obvious that the experiences on some ships just aren't as good as others. Granted, it shouldn't be that way. They should offer a quality experience across the entire line, but evidently it happens. So if I were to have a very bad experience aboard one ship, I won't give up on the line just yet. I'll probably just avoid that ship. Plus, something that's BAD to some people might just be meh to others. We don't hang out drinking on Lido, so lack of servers wouldn't bother me. And it certainly wouldn't be a reason, for me, to leave the line. How does one know that the housekeeping team isn't vacuuming your cabin? We're out & about so much that we rarely ever see our cabin being cleaned. Once in a while we'll catch them in the act, but if we do, we go away to let them do their work. I don't stand around to see if they vacuum. And if you truly feel they're not cleaning it properly, then talk to them. They're reasonable people who typically aim to please. If that doesn't work, go to Guest Services. If I found that to be a problem, I certainly wouldn't let it happen for a week or two without addressing it.

[Taters]

10 minutes ago, Organized Chaos said:

Every now and again, I see people say that their one bad cruise caused them to give up on Carnival completely. Personally, it'll take more than one bad cruise to chase me away because there's always a chance that it was a fluke. Not to mention the fact that, after reading about countless experiences that cruisers have had across the entire fleet, it's become obvious that the experiences on some ships just aren't as good as others. Granted, it shouldn't be that way. They should offer a quality experience across the entire line, but evidently it happens. So if I were to have a very bad experience aboard one ship, I won't give up on the line just yet. I'll probably just avoid that ship. Plus, something that's BAD to some people might just be meh to others. We don't hang out drinking on Lido, so lack of servers wouldn't bother me. And it certainly wouldn't be a reason, for me, to leave the line. How does one know that the housekeeping team isn't vacuuming your cabin? We're out & about so much that we rarely ever see our cabin being cleaned. Once in a while we'll catch them in the act, but if we do, we go away to let them do their work. I don't stand around to see if they vacuum. And if you truly feel they're not cleaning it properly, then talk to them. They're reasonable people who typically aim to please. If that doesn't work, go to Guest Services. If I found that to be a problem, I certainly wouldn't let it happen for a week or two without addressing it.

We gave up on Carnival not after just one cruise, but after 4 or 5 cruises on several ships since 2015.  The Pride cruise was simply the clencher for us.  We feel that Carnival has spiraled too far down and is not for us anymore.

 

Room cleanliness has been an ongoing issue.  Besides dirty bathrooms, the vacuuming issue has been apparent for several years, and we knew that they weren't vacuuming because there were a few small piles of debris that there day after day after day.  We did talk to them and nothing changed.  The cleaning crew has been stretched too thin and there isn't enough time in the day for them to do their jobs.  Supervisors can only crack the whip so many times before they give up. 

 

Carnival's cleanliness and service culture has changed.  It used to be a great cruise line.  Now, it's just not.  When staffing levels are back up, we'll return.  In the meantime, there are cleaner ships for us with plenty of staff to provide great service.

[grandmarnnurse]

On 9/22/2019 at 8:55 PM, JKrise said:

Given the current quality of the platinum loyalty gift,  and/or coupled with the company selling your loyalty perks via FTTF, thus diluting your value to CCL, do you regret having a future cruise booked with CCL?

Will you book a future cruise with CCL or move on to another line?

Honestly, these two factors have left DW and I feeling under appreciated as a long term loyal returning customer.

Guessing that the cost of new customer acquisition has dropped so significantly CCL is willing to wave good bye to a loyal customer base.

Those are our thoughts.

Just curious to hear from others.

 

Sorry, but I just find this question some what off putting. Carnival doesn’t have to give you ANY gift, so why does the gift matter so much to you? I’m not trying to be rude, but threads like these sound like too much entitled whining. I honestly cannot wait to make Platinum just so I can board early and get to my cabin upon boarding without having to purchase FTTF. Oh, and the parties they have for P&D guests that I, as a Past Guest, always were invited to before they made them only for P&D. They do not owe me any gift, but whatever they want to leave in cabin for me, would be fine with me. 😎🛳

[grandmarnnurse]

On 9/22/2019 at 9:00 PM, N7786W Flyer said:

No, no regrets.  My wife and I have 6 Carnival cruises booked for 2020 and another 3 booked for 2021...and I haven't looked at late 2021 (which just opened) yet.

 

Honestly, I don't see FTTF as on the same level as Platinum/Diamond...maybe I'm deluding myself, but FTTF doesn't bother me. 

 

As far as the loyalty gift goes, yes, some of them have been meh, but for the most part, I've enjoyed them.  Sure, I'd trade it for free internet or something similar, but until that happens, I'll be content just to receive a small token of recognition from Carnival.

Glad to hear from someone that isn’t whining about what Carnival is giving them

[Organized Chaos]

1 hour ago, Taters said:

We gave up on Carnival not after just one cruise, but after 4 or 5 cruises on several ships since 2015.  The Pride cruise was simply the clencher for us.  We feel that Carnival has spiraled too far down and is not for us anymore.

 

Room cleanliness has been an ongoing issue.  Besides dirty bathrooms, the vacuuming issue has been apparent for several years, and we knew that they weren't vacuuming because there were a few small piles of debris that there day after day after day.  We did talk to them and nothing changed.  The cleaning crew has been stretched too thin and there isn't enough time in the day for them to do their jobs.  Supervisors can only crack the whip so many times before they give up. 

 

Carnival's cleanliness and service culture has changed.  It used to be a great cruise line.  Now, it's just not.  When staffing levels are back up, we'll return.  In the meantime, there are cleaner ships for us with plenty of staff to provide great service.

 

I thought you meant the Pride cruise alone caused you to move on. I misunderstood, I apologize.

 

In the end, only one thing is going to affect Carnival's decision to reduce crew numbers, and that's their bottom line. If enough people get tired of lacking service and leave, Carnival will take notice at some point. I also think it's very important to fill our surveys and reviews, but do so in a rational manner and not based strictly on raw emotion. Even though we may be feeling angry and upset about a cruise, if we come off too strong when voicing our disapproval, companies will just ignore it. If enough of their loyal customers show them that their decision to reduce crew numbers has had a negative impact on quality of service, they'll take notice. Or at least we hope they do.

[CoolOne56]

6 hours ago, Organized Chaos said:

 

I thought you meant the Pride cruise alone caused you to move on. I misunderstood, I apologize.

 

In the end, only one thing is going to affect Carnival's decision to reduce crew numbers, and that's their bottom line. If enough people get tired of lacking service and leave, Carnival will take notice at some point. I also think it's very important to fill our surveys and reviews, but do so in a rational manner and not based strictly on raw emotion. Even though we may be feeling angry and upset about a cruise, if we come off too strong when voicing our disapproval, companies will just ignore it. If enough of their loyal customers show them that their decision to reduce crew numbers has had a negative impact on quality of service, they'll take notice. Or at least we hope they do.

 

Well said OC! You can't fill out the surveys "hot headed".  Take a day or so, compose your thoughts and have at it - politely.

 

My last cruise in 2017, I did NOT get a survey email from Carnival. Sooo, I went to Carnivals website and searched for one, found it   and submitted. Fortunately, we had a great time.

 

Everyone should fill out the surveys after their cruise.  HOPEFULLY, the surveys will let the "suits" at Carnival know how they are being rated by their clientele.

[Florings]

I always have such a good time on our cruises.  Sometimes I notice what people are wearing, but I only notice - not stare or care.  Sometimes there are groups that drink a bit much and get loud, maybe off color language and inappropriate, but I only notice - and move on if I must.   Sometimes there are people in the buffet or at Guy's or Pizza Pirate that are a bit pushy and rude and it might even annoy the heck out of me - but ultimately I get my food, sit down with my husband and enjoy my meal.  Sometimes I can't find a lounge chair because they are all hogged, but luckily I don't mind looking up on a higher deck - there are always seats somewhere.

 

We will be platinum on our cruise in 27 days - so excited!   We have had the occasional rough spots over the last dozen cruises, but more importantly we have had so much joy on our cruises.  The sky and sea, the wonderful crew members, being waited on hand and foot, waking up in the morning to different islands - some of our best memories.

 

I'm looking forward to early boarding, and the P/D party, the chocolate strawberries (if they still do those).  But mostly, I am looking forward to being on the sea again.  And regardless of what happens or what gift we are given, all in all, we will have an awesome time!

[jimbo5544]

6 hours ago, Florings said:

I always have such a good time on our cruises.  Sometimes I notice what people are wearing, but I only notice - not stare or care.  Sometimes there are groups that drink a bit much and get loud, maybe off color language and inappropriate, but I only notice - and move on if I must.   Sometimes there are people in the buffet or at Guy's or Pizza Pirate that are a bit pushy and rude and it might even annoy the heck out of me - but ultimately I get my food, sit down with my husband and enjoy my meal.  Sometimes I can't find a lounge chair because they are all hogged, but luckily I don't mind looking up on a higher deck - there are always seats somewhere.

 

We will be platinum on our cruise in 27 days - so excited!   We have had the occasional rough spots over the last dozen cruises, but more importantly we have had so much joy on our cruises.  The sky and sea, the wonderful crew members, being waited on hand and foot, waking up in the morning to different islands - some of our best memories.

 

I'm looking forward to early boarding, and the P/D party, the chocolate strawberries (if they still do those).  But mostly, I am looking forward to being on the sea again.  And regardless of what happens or what gift we are given, all in all, we will have an awesome time!

Nice post

[evandbob]

We have an 11 night Celebrity Equinox southern, a 2 week land vacay in Punta Cana, XMas in NY, RCCL Symphony of the Seas western 7 nighter, a 10 night Panama/Columbia NCL,  two weeks land travel in Egypt, a 9 night Carnival Legend Norway fjord cruise and a 14 night NCL Buenos Aires around Cape Horn and thru the Chilean fjords to Santiago, Chile booked, and I don't regret scheduling any of them.

 

I may poof on the lanyard, but that is a non factor in booking a travel experience for us.  We give away any stuff we can't use, doesn't matter if it's a loyalty reward or a casino gift.  But that's not a reason to book or not book a sailing.

[CanWeGoYet?]

I don't regret my current booking on Carnival.  It isn't a new itinerary for me, but a reasonable price for a cruise over a holiday and in an awesome class of suite I haven't been on yet.  That said, I will probably be booking Celebrity or other cruise lines in the future aside from a quick local getaway.   My bucket list has itineraries that are not common on Carnival, unless they are Journey cruises - and it seems those are at a premium higher than what the other mass market cruise lines charge.   The 1-2-3 promotions on Celebrity more than make up for any disparity in price between the two lines.  

Edited September 28, 2019 by CanWeGoYet?

[PhillyFan33579]

On 9/27/2019 at 1:50 AM, CoolOne56 said:

 

Well said OC! You can't fill out the surveys "hot headed".  Take a day or so, compose your thoughts and have at it - politely.

 

My last cruise in 2017, I did NOT get a survey email from Carnival. Sooo, I went to Carnivals website and searched for one, found it   and submitted. Fortunately, we had a great time.

 

Everyone should fill out the surveys after their cruise.  HOPEFULLY, the surveys will let the "suits" at Carnival know how they are being rated by their clientele.

 

At a recent Diamond special event I attended, I heard some interesting comments from senior staff members concerning the surveys. They basically stated the main purpose of the surveys was to evaluate their employees.

 

Someone asked something similar to isn’t feedback from your passengers important. Their collective response was they receive feedback every day based on how much money is spent on bookings, excursions, specialty restaurants, ship stores, bingo, individual bars, FTTF, etc. 

[jimbo5544]

13 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

 

At a recent Diamond special event I attended, I heard some interesting comments from senior staff members concerning the surveys. They basically stated the main purpose of the surveys was to evaluate their employees.

 

Someone asked something similar to isn’t feedback from your passengers important. Their collective response was they receive feedback every day based on how much money is spent on bookings, excursions, specialty restaurants, ship stores, bingo, individual bars, FTTF, etc. 

All true.  They also have some panels of cruisers and travel partners to gather info.

[glrounds]

7 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

 

Their collective response was they receive feedback every day based on how much money is spent on bookings, excursions, specialty restaurants, ship stores, bingo, individual bars, FTTF, etc. 

 

This is absolutely TRUE. With the closed economic environment of a Carnival ship there is a virtual goldmine of spending habits via the ole Sign'n'Sale account. Cabin choice, drink choices and AMOUNT, ship shop expenditures, EXCURSION choices, GAMBLING, pay dining, BINGO, photo purchases, etc. Combine this with your cruise status, age, number in your party, and everything else, and any puter program would smile at this data base.

 

Without having any knowledge of this data base, I would be willing to bet that Carnival would just as soon the P&Ds move on. I think this study would reveal that newbies up to 5 or 8 times cruisers with children are their golden goose. If letting the service slide it'll only be noticed by the old timers. 😞

Edited September 28, 2019 by glrounds

[Organized Chaos]

1 hour ago, glrounds said:

I think this study would reveal that newbies up to 5 or 8 times cruisers with children are their golden goose. If letting the service slide it'll only be noticed by the old timers. 😞

 

The fact that anyone would consider people who have cruised 5-8 times as still being "newbies" is part of the problem. It isn't that much of a stretch for people who've been on 8 cruises to be Platinum, but in your mind, that number equates to a "newbie." I can't tell you how many times I've seen long-time cruisers come up with some arbitrary number as to how many cruises someone has to take before they're considered equals. That number is always different and they usually keep moving the goal post. It's nothing more than a form of elitism.

 

According to an article I read a couple years ago, two Carnival execs stated that their data suggests that people who reach their third cruise basically leave the "just trying it out" phase and become full-on "cruisers" (their word) who then tend to show loyalty to Carnival. So they were interested in finding ways to attract first and second timers to reach that magic number three. So it looks like their idea of "loyal" customers is much different than that of many P/D's who seem to think you have to reach Platinum to be considered loyal. They're the ones with the data to support it, so I tend to believe them.

 

Considering how often many (not all) P/D's complain about the free gift they're given, complain about Carnival selling a few perks via FTTF, and complain that Carnival doesn't love them anymore, it shouldn't come as a surprise if Carnival actually is distancing themselves from their so-called "loyal" long-time customers. No company wants to continue showing support for long-time customers who repeatedly badmouth said company.

[glrounds]

32 minutes ago, Organized Chaos said:

 

The fact that anyone would consider people who have cruised 5-8 times as still being "newbies" is part of the problem. It isn't that much of a stretch for people who've been on 8 cruises to be Platinum, but in your mind, that number equates to a "newbie." I can't tell you how many times I've seen long-time cruisers come up with some arbitrary number as to how many cruises someone has to take before they're considered equals. That number is always different and they usually keep moving the goal post. It's nothing more than a form of elitism.

 

According to an article I read a couple years ago, two Carnival execs stated that their data suggests that people who reach their third cruise basically leave the "just trying it out" phase and become full-on "cruisers" (their word) who then tend to show loyalty to Carnival. So they were interested in finding ways to attract first and second timers to reach that magic number three. So it looks like their idea of "loyal" customers is much different than that of many P/D's who seem to think you have to reach Platinum to be considered loyal. They're the ones with the data to support it, so I tend to believe them.

 

Considering how often many (not all) P/D's complain about the free gift they're given, complain about Carnival selling a few perks via FTTF, and complain that Carnival doesn't love them anymore, it shouldn't come as a surprise if Carnival actually is distancing themselves from their so-called "loyal" long-time customers. No company wants to continue showing support for long-time customers who repeatedly badmouth said company.

 

I was giving an arbitrary span of time from newbies UP TO 5-8 cruises. You seem to read to fast or carry around a strawman with you.The "cheapie" cruiser that I am would hardly be considered "elite". A client that usually cruises solo, drinks maybe 2 beers a day, never gambles on the slots, has never taken a ship-sponsored excursion and looks upon bingo with amusement at all the guppies that can't do simple math.

 

I've never begrudged the FTTF people that somehow can't resist paying $50 to get on a ship an hour sooner for their 168 hour cruise. It's another revenue stream that keeps my cabin rates lower, hopefully. If Carnival wanted to GIVE me $50 to let someone board in my place I'd jump at that idea. 🙂

For $5 they can have my laundry perk. I bring clean clothes and wash dirty homes when I'm home.

 

The "gift" has become a joke in and of its own doing. I used to have a set of Tervis tumblers (broke one now only have 3), I even used the brilliant shoulder pack on a trip to London a couple years ago. Cheap, but very useful gift, IMHO. People easily spend two or three GRAND on a cruise and get all butt sore over a trinket-class gift. It's amusing at best. Carnival doesn't "love" anybody. It's not supposed to. That's not part of its business plan. It, routinely for me (32 cruises), trades value for value. If Carnival built that "get rid of" data base that I mentioned in the post you quoted, I'm sure I would make the first one thousand. 🙂

 

I cruise for the sea and ports where I can mingle with the commoners. That's being a traveler and not a tourist. Now it's on to the PANORAMA in January visiting ports that I'm familiar with. Still want to see if that former CD of Carnival's still has a restaurant in Puerto Vallarta. And the street tacos in Mazatlan are to die for.

[PhillyFan33579]

I just logged on to my Carnival account to see how many cruises I have booked. I knew I had a lot of cruises booked, but didn’t realize I have 20 cruises booked on Carnival thru February 2022. I think I can safely say I have no regrets booking future cruises on Carnival.  

[CoolOne56]

14 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

 

At a recent Diamond special event I attended, I heard some interesting comments from senior staff members concerning the surveys. They basically stated the main purpose of the surveys was to evaluate their employees.

 

Someone asked something similar to isn’t feedback from your passengers important. Their collective response was they receive feedback every day based on how much money is spent on bookings, excursions, specialty restaurants, ship stores, bingo, individual bars, FTTF, etc. 

 

PhillyFan, this is so true.  Coincidentally, today on John Heald's FB page, he talked about surveys.  This is the latter part:

One of my now since retired CD colleagues would say, “I am not one to beg ” and then he would go down on his knees and with his arms open wide he would, while in the begging position, say, “Pleeeeease give us an excellent.”

There was fierce competition between the ships to be number 1, to be in first place, that drove us on.

Here in 2019 things are very different and review cars are sent on the interweb and not everyone gets sent a review and of course guests send their reviews here to me and post on other social media channels.

But every ship wants to be the best but we also know that there are many factors that we have to take into consideration.
Guests sailing from Galveston seem to be easier going with their ratings than say a ship sailing from New York.. There are weather factors and other things that will affect the overall rating but one thing is for sure, every ship wants to be the best

So if you do get sent a review card online please take the time to complete it. Your feedback is truly valuable as is the praise you give the crew. Thank you for doing so.