TTraub1250

toddnmaria: we are sailing on Anthem on June 1 to just Bermuda.  Looking on several sites for the cruise compass for this 5 day and have not seen it posted yet. Last Oct on Anthem we are walking down the hall to our room and ran into people from church. 

There is a 7 day Anthem cruise compass posted and the title of the post is about the menu in Chops for the embarkation day. 

Watch for the couple who are getting married in Boston and taking the train to New Penn Station.  They are actually traveling the day of departure on their honeymoon cruise. 

OOOOPPPPPPss  your right, thanks for the correction.  Two70 is in the stern, just before the aft theater, and the Bistro for the solarium is all the way forward.   

We sailed Anthem in Oct 2018, and the line to get into Windjammer was about 15-30 minutes at lunch time.  They recommended we go to "270" in the Solarium.  Food was excellent for a small buffet and there was only a 2-4 minute wait. We bought the Key this time and will have lunch at Chops when we sail in June. Host Clarea has always been spot on with her information and very reliable. Many things are to taste, so use CC to check out what some of these recommendations by reading the write ups CC has to offer.  Yes there are always lots of small points on these questions, so ask your questions. 

The original point of the discussion was not to solve the problem, it was "what do you think is an appropriate response" on the part of the ship's operations people, and then when they did not give the customer a "level of comfort" in solving the problem, what should have been the appropriate corporate response.   If you read the lady's post on her Disney problem you will quickly get a sense of how a "classy company" handles a problem. In many cases, companies do not have to give most of the customers a monetary remuneration.  Quick handling of the problem, listening, meaningful response and if necessary a follow up by a senior person. 

A discussion like this is why I post to hear about other people's education and experiences.  I was lucky to go to Joe Juran's Quality Institute. Deming spoke in Rochester in the early 1980's to Xerox and I got to hear his presentation !  He was true to form and chewed out management !  Where have all the quality gurus gone ?   Seems like we are slipping back.  Thank you for sharing.   

Orville99:  Six Sigma was invented at Motorola in the 1980's. This statistical tool builds on Dr. Deming's work in statistical quality control.  Continuous improvement is part of the Toyota quality systems of the 60's & 70's.  So please do not spread fake news.  And like the companies you mentioned, they lost sight of the customer and market right and made mistakes in spades?  

TicketsUnlimited:  Although I did not buy at $5, like orville claims,  I did buy at $66 and like all stocks,  looking for continuous up over the long term.  Looking forward improved customer service & comfort level of customers will ensure a greater market share, which will help mitigate with the possible over capacity in the next few years.  

The big picture here is the stock price... currently hovering $113 to $114 and it was up over $130 at this level of the DJIA. 

Multiple the delta ( $130 - $114) times the number of shares held, and $10 isn't even noise.  Before someone tries to educate me that there are many factors that make up the stock price, one that possible we as stockholders can effect is "Quality of Service" ! 

As we read the posts by the cruisers, we read about many problems that can occur in this industry and then some problems that should not occur.  Problems occur because of Standard Operating & Safety procedures that are well thought out with high standards ( critical thinking applied ) and with employees not following the established SO&SP !  Companies that have a culture of properly training & empowering employees to deal with problems with an independent quality system in place to ensure employees are following SO&SP !  Independent means the operations people are audited to the standards set.  Parents encourage their kids to sign up for the "Disney Career Start Program" due to the training, discipline and strict rules kids must follow. This Disney program is the gold standard and yes a certain number of kids wash out, but even the wash outs learn this high standard. 

It is the responsibility of Richard Fain & Michael Bayley to establish that culture with high standards and to ensure it  is maintained, is continuously improved and people are held accountable.  This higher level of culture & training does cost a little more ( investment ), yet the payback is almost immediate with the ROI at 5X-10X the investment $. Most world class companies will have a written marketing strategy.  Does RCCL have a Quality Strategy which includes customer service ? I have read their quality statement, but that is not a full blown strategy.   RCCL has what they call the " Royal Way" which employees are trained in, yet in the day to day operations on board ships we experience poor customer problem resolution.  Not only is the problem poorly resolved, the communications to the customer are very lacking on several levels. The communications on problems back to the customer are reported to be lacking in details of what is being done (comfort level to the customer) and in a number of these reports, a lack of empathy on what the customer went through.   I understand working with the public there are those that try to "game" the system and get free benefits, reduced rates, and can scream " the sky is falling" when it isn't.  

As long time cruisers we understand that RCCL reads these posts and the more we report these "true problems"  and "poor quality service", then the company will take action, because these incident / problem posts directly affect the bookings on a cruise line.  As stockholders we know there is competition and our investment view is long term.  Just comparing yourself against other cruise company competition is not enough.   Richard Fain & Michael Bayley also are aware that failure in the execution of the various strategies including culture, can result in them being asked to step down.  We have seen a number of CEOs that did not pay attention or did not have the " Chief Quality Officer" reporting to them, so they did not really know what was going on at the operations level.  

I called the corporate offices also to see what was being done about a serious problem I experienced,  and reported several ways. The young lady apologized, offered my a free meal at Chops, and did not want to investigate or return my call after the problem was thoroughly investigated. At the ship level they did not really want to admit to problem or to ensure there is not a systemic problem.   I did not take the free meal, because that was not what I was after, and she still did not understand, it seemed her job was to just "cover it up / make it go away".  Not the culture you want for the long term for continuous improvement ! 

I have a past business colleague, that has a service monkey for his wife. This monkey is so well trained and I believe smarter than a dog. The monkey does not have the limitations of a dog.  Most unusual living situation I have ever seen.  The wife does not travel, but that would be interesting on a plane and/or cruise.  The local theater President knew of the monkey and a few years ago brought in a play that had significant role for my business colleague and the monkey.  The play was a big hit. Wish I could remember the name of the play.  Any one else see or know of an legitimate service animal other than a dog or monkey ?  

If the Kennel has balcony cabins, that is extra. If you get the 3 night dinning package and the dogs have steak, remember all the items are ala cart, and then it adds up to $100 per night and that is before the 18% gratuity. The kennel stopped the midnight buffet.   😁😁

Glad they are now limiting the ships to service dogs only. These dog owners do not want to pay the $60 to $100 per night for a good dog kennel, so they get their doctor to write a note saying it is a emotional support dog !  On a cruise ship in such close quarters, the dog owners have to provide emotional support to the dog, because in high stress situations such as a dog experiences on a cruise, the dog is stressed out. Seen several dogs just stand there and shake, they were so stressed out.  Even the highly selected dogs  (only a couple breeds) that go through EMS training, can fail/flunk out of training school,  because they can not "work" in high stress situations.  These owners of "pets" who claim these dogs are emotional support, are not trained and quite frankly are clueless to stress put on dogs in certain situations that are common on ships.  Be kind to your pet and do not bring them on a ship !  Service dogs that are properly trained and are working, are most welcome ! 

My emotional support dogs ! I need lots of emotional support since the Buffalo Bills have not be in the superbowl in way to many years. Do you think RCCL will allow me to bring them ?  

These tight quarters, it is not fair to people who are allergic. Much like smoking on a plane. Laws were put in place to prevent second hand smoke disease. Cruise lines do not want sick people to come on the ship, will limit pregnant women and if you are found to be sick will quarantine you to your room. Well a dog in a tight spot can cause someone to go into allergic shock, with the throat closing and worst case the person dying in minutes.

When a child is checked into Ocean Adventure and the staff needs to contact the parents for many different reasons, how does the staff get in quick contact with the parents ?  

My I suggest you read the screen print of the US Customs & Boarder Patrol that is attached.  Then call the US C&PB / Immigration office in the port you are leaving from. These agents are always very helpful.  Suggest that person have a non-drivers or drivers photo ID with them and the birth certificate ( not a copy ).   

Thank you Host Clarea, you have always been very reliable and helpful !   So it seems when I need to have a drink, it will be a rum and coke. 

I would like to get the non-alcoholic drink package and then have one or two alcoholic drinks per day.  What will they charge me for the alcoholic drinks ?  The difference between a non-alcoholic drink and the cost of an alcoholic?   Or will they charge me the full cost of an alcoholic drink ?  Anyone have this experience ?  Thank you. 

Cruse Credit BoA number is 866-562-7625 to get the credits added to your OBC early so if the drink package goes on sale you can use these credits to purchase the package. 

You can call the office of Boarder & Customs in your home port or in the port you are leaving from and they are very helpful people.  Attached is a screen print of their website.  People's experiences are good, and you should also read the written law and ask intelligent questions after research of the agents in the office. 

Here are the screen prints from Customs and Boarder Patrol.  Read carefully.  If you still have questions call the port you are leaving from and talk with an agent, as they are generally very helpful. Do not rely just on the experiences of our CC members. 

Here are the screen prints from Customs and Boarder Patrol.  Read carefully.  If you still have questions call the port you are leaving from and talk with an agent, as they are generally very helpful. Do not rely just on the experiences of our CC members. 

I am interested in how these ships provide service, in addition to the technical side, because I own a number of shares of stock and provide feedback via several channels to companies interested in what the competition is doing. That is why I ended my post with " Your Experience".  Would love to consult for Disney, just to see the training and indoctrination process. 

Chengkp75:  Mate or engineer ?  Which school ?  Graduated in 1971 and started with US lines ( Pioneer Contender ) delivering bombs and beer to Vietnam. I agree with most of what you have said.  Talking with the licensed mates and engineers, reading many of the post about problems of resolution, articles written, and my own experiences, it seems companies are slipping in both the quality given and the resolution of the problems.  Went back and got my masters and then Lean Six Sigma Black Belt with a focus on design quality in nuclear subs, so maybe I am over sensitive on quality issues. 

Master LSSBB ?  Have you read any of Skip Creveling's material on Design for Six Sigma ?