Regal - Zumba and Line Dancing...ANNOYING!

Just returned from a 14 night transatlantic on the Regal. Overall a nice cruise with a great itinerary. One primary complaint (we already made princess aware of this in the post cruise survey)...

In the mornings from 9:00 until about 11, the Piazza was used for Zumba classes and for line dancing. This made enjoying a cup of coffee (or anything else in the Piazza for that matter) virtually impossible. Every morning there were in excess of 100 participants dancing and sweating to loud music. The lowermost floor was always full so participants were dancing along the railings on all three levels cluttering traffic flow there as well.

Princess needs to seriously consider moving these activities to other venues on the ship that would have a lesser impact on those not participating. This is especially the case on the Regal because the ship lacks the many quiet little nooks to sit and relax quietly that we have had the ability to enjoy on other ships.

I have found that hiding in the back of Vines is helpful to avoiding the crowds, though I do have to admit- I like to watch the line-dancing.

Sounds like great fun for the participants and watching onlookers.

Perhaps next time you could sit in your stateroom or on the balcony and enjoy your coffee in tranquillity there.

Unfortunately, there are few non-central venues on any ship that would account for 100 active people. If there is that much interest, the CD is going to put it in a location that can handle it, with collateral damage.

why not put the class in the theater?

Agree with Tracie's point about Vines, plus - the IC is expanded on the Regal, sometimes a good seat can be had by the windows, same with Crooners

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Agree with Tracie's point about Vines, plus - the IC is expanded on the Regal, sometimes a good seat can be had by the windows, same with Crooners

All true. But while you may be out of the way, no way to be out of the noise if you are anywhere in the vicinity on any of the three open levels.

Sounds like great fun for the participants and watching onlookers.

 

Perhaps next time you could sit in your stateroom or on the balcony and enjoy your coffee in tranquillity there.

We do not cruise to sit on the stateroom or the balcony - Good coffee level 5 - our balcony level 15. Not really an option even if we'd want to.

For the participants? Fine, sure. For the onlookers? Not so much. The onlookers are mainly classified as such by default. We saw plenty of eyes rolling at the activities.

I get it - some people like this stuff. This is just a word of warning for those who don't.

You can take your coffees to any of the lounges in the AM and find peace and quiet. :) We enjoy watching people enjoying themselves as we drink our coffees. Makes for a happy cruise vibe.

Club 6 is a lovely place to curl up with coffee and a good book during the day.

All true. But while you may be out of the way, no way to be out of the noise if you are anywhere in the vicinity on any of the three open levels.

On most ships they would hold those activities in explorers, which unfortunately was replaced in the Royal class ships and thus not available.

Bottom line is that you are sharing the ship with others that like that activity and the Piazza is used for them and other activities with loud music.

Just returned from a 14 night transatlantic on the Regal. Overall a nice cruise with a great itinerary. One primary complaint (we already made princess aware of this in the post cruise survey)...

 

In the mornings from 9:00 until about 11, the Piazza was used for Zumba classes and for line dancing. This made enjoying a cup of coffee (or anything else in the Piazza for that matter) virtually impossible. Every morning there were in excess of 100 participants dancing and sweating to loud music. The lowermost floor was always full so participants were dancing along the railings on all three levels cluttering traffic flow there as well.

 

Princess needs to seriously consider moving these activities to other venues on the ship that would have a lesser impact on those not participating. This is especially the case on the Regal because the ship lacks the many quiet little nooks to sit and relax quietly that we have had the ability to enjoy on other ships.

On the Regal there are no other indoor places that can hold the large numbers. The ship was not designed with enough indoor venues. On warm weather cruises Zumba is done outdoors on the basketball Ct., but line dancing is still held in the Piazza or sometimes in the small dance floor area of the Vista Lounge. Someone mentioned the theater, but that is a safety concern. The stage is full of openings, slots for scenery to be moved in and out, floors that go up and down. It's also very dark, with dangerous tripping hazards backstage, and there are lots of show sets being stored there. When I was on the stage I had to have a safety talk before being allowed to go. The stage is not suitable for this kind of group activity. On the Royal, sister ship, I have seen line dancing done at times in Princess Live.

On Grand Class ships Zumba is usually held in Club Fusion, or the Vista Lounge. Line Dancing may be in Club Fusion, Vista Lounge or Explorer's Lounge.

I would hate having an audience while I'm exercising. I agree that is not the best location for anyone involved. The participants or non participants.

The use of the Piazza most of the day and night for loud activities and entertainment was one of our biggest complaints about Royal/Regal Princess. On the Grand Class ships you can relax with a dessert and cappuccino and listen to a solo piano or guitar or string trio and have a conversation. This is impossible on Royal/Regal.

We find that the very loud music for the line dancing and zumba is extremely annoying!!

The use of the Piazza most of the day and night for loud activities and entertainment was one of our biggest complaints about Royal/Regal Princess. On the Grand Class ships you can relax with a dessert and cappuccino and listen to a solo piano or guitar or string trio and have a conversation. This is impossible on Royal/Regal.

Agreed. While there is some time to enjoy the activities you mention, there is a lot of time where this is not the case. Just not an ideal design and as such, quiet/loud activities have been merged into one shared space.

Ordinarily, complaints such as this don't resonate with me. When you agree to take a cruise with 4,000 other people, you buy into a certain amount of annoyance outside of your own private space, (cabin and balcony). But this particular complaint struck a chord. Princess prides itself on its atriums/Piazzas. Zumba and line dancing seem ill-fitted for this particular area of the ship especially when the IC is used so extensively in the mornings as a prime breakfast/coffee venue. I could see squeezing these activities into the Piazza from 10:00-11:00, but 9:00-10:00 seems like a bad convergence of space and use. In good weather, can't this be done out on a deck or one of the Promenade patios? But it is what it is, and factors into my decision as to which ship to book. Shrink my balcony and take away some prime public space and you pretty much push me elsewhere.

I have NOT cruised Regal Princess YET, but from reading the threads it seems ....unlike other ships Regal Has a barista within the pastry shop. If this is indeed true someone on board, might have mentioned it to OP during his complaining on the ship. That he could have gotten his coffee there.

On the Diamond, these were held in Club Fusion. THey need to be there or outside on the pool deck. Japanese morning exercises were on the pool deck early in the morning. And they are quiet!

You can take your coffees to any of the lounges in the AM and find peace and quiet. :) We enjoy watching people enjoying themselves as we drink our coffees. Makes for a happy cruise vibe.

Agree.....we have spent almost 100 days on the Royal and Regal and there are plenty of places to sit and have coffee throughout the ship....what makes the Piazza fun is that there is always so many different activities going on there throughout the day....the definition alone of "an open public square" indicates that it is going to be used by everybody.....

The use of the Piazza most of the day and night for loud activities and entertainment was one of our biggest complaints about Royal/Regal Princess. On the Grand Class ships you can relax with a dessert and cappuccino and listen to a solo piano or guitar or string trio and have a conversation. This is impossible on Royal/Regal.

On our Feb 2016 Regal cruise there were very few loud and annoying activities in the Piazza. Most events were fantastic and not too loud (like a great string quartet and some great street performers) and all events were quite brief. The majority of the time the Piazza was a great place to chill and people watch.

We were two of the zumba ers last week on the Regal. Was too crowded to move around while doing it but dont think there is another indoor place to do it.

Lots of other places to enjoy morning coffee though

Zumba sounds like something for the fitness center to me.

:rolleyes:

Zumba sounds like something for the fitness center to me.

:rolleyes:

Or maybe the Sun Deck. Or the court on the Sports Deck.

Looking forward to our first cruise on the Regal in February 2018. Pretty sure we'll have a great time whether or not there is Zumba exercise in the Piazza area.

But, I really don't see group exercising in the Piazza as a good fit. I've been in a lot of piazzas in Italy, Spain, etc. and totally expect to see the periodic hustle and bustle of markets, cultural singing, dancing, theater or celebration of a special event or holiday. Sometimes it's fun to watch from a nearby cafe.

Watching a large group of sweating, exercising vacationers would never rank on my list as a pleasant hang-out experience.