sisocialworker

TGIF..we are closer

4 hours ago, wrk2cruise said:

On Dec 4 when the opened the Caribbean season they had it scheduled for the regular reposition to San Juan with the normal 7 night sailings from San Juan after that.   I was onboard and had the repo booked on hold and was in the process of booking the next cruise as a B2B when the Future Cruise agent said the next cruise wasn't taking reservations.  Subsequently all itineraries were removed from the system and nothing has been posted since.

 

Nobody seems to know what's going on.

i wonder what the issue is...need a high level connection to celebrity to get the scoop

nothing listed yet for 2021..I'm hoping it does a 12 night reposition cruise from boston to Ft. Lauderdale/miami..that is what it's doing for 2020

do the floating cabanas have numbers?  which cabana seems best, for us an end one gives most privacy..thanks

15 minutes ago, suesnake2002 said:

I went to the meet and mingle on the one stop grandeur trip on nov 16. Rough seas and an early meeting meant we all got goodie bags. I think 4 or 5 people showed up. 

on my last Harmony trip we had 160 people show up for M&M...bing bong and all the senior staff were there....nice giveaways too...specialty restaurant certificates , in room movies, booze...backpacks...hats and little stuff too

3 hours ago, Tulsacoker said:

I do! ... hey more key chains for me then 😄 

i go to the M&M all the time too..a fun time meeting new people and those we chat with on CC

Just now, John&LaLa said:

 

Sorry, I rarely go

party pooper 😉 

how is the CC meet and mingle?

2 hours ago, Milwaukee Eight said:

I think you really meant to tag @Andy C

 

No picture quote. 

yes, sorry andyc

who are the concierges in the SL? and in DL?  we expect  full review and rating 😉  

window seats for @andyc , funny....doesn't look like lots of "pins" for him either.....I'm still waiting to hear his "issue"

thanks for the posts..sailing with Mario is cool......will you be eating at the BBQ? it's on my list in case the CK gets redundant-which it can, unless the chef makes us special dishes not on the menu 😉 .  I'm sure Andy will stop in....hope your glowing review will nudge him to book 12/13/20 .....thanks for taking me along..vicariously

i going in december, so i'm looking forward to your full review and pictures..especially for those who use the SL and CK...enjoy

8 hours ago, OceansOfTravels said:

Thank you so much for your review! I am sailing on the Explorer this Friday for my first RCI cruise in a long time, and I am very excited. I'm hoping things go well so I can start considering Royal more in the future. Quick question: did you find your sailing to be busy? You were right before Christmas so I imagine that it was. If so, did you feel as though the ship was too cramped with people? Do you think it could handle the amount that it had? I am just trying to get a general idea of if there will be long lines in the Windjammer, no available chairs to tan, and a long time to embark the ship after a port of call. 

 

Thanks in advance for your reply, glad to see that you had a nice time away, despite the hiccups!

I did not find it "busy" at all...the usual crowds in windjammer and elevators at peak times.  DW is an "early" person, she said the windjammer is great at 7am..we are not pool/tan people so I cannot comment on deck loungers....getting on and off is a breeze, but were in a suite and had priority....we did see a long wait to get off as we walked right by the crowds waiting to get off.... 

thanks for sharing..till next time

@LadyLion_AP thank you for passing my regards along to the staff at Giovanni...they are the best and helped make our cruise.....glad things are getting better for be...enjoy....

26 minutes ago, LadyLion_AP said:

Dinner at IZUMI tonight was great! @sisocialworker maybe they heard you! It’s unfortunate you didn’t feel heard while sailing! @ShazM we also preferred Giovanni’s over Chops. It just wasn’t the standard we’ve become accustomed to on other ships. ☹️

the food/fish was great, very fresh...the service poor and took a long time to get our food...glad they heard me..enjoy

Just now, LadyLion_AP said:

Thanks. Will do! Currently losing at Harry Potter trivia...was sure we’d win! 😝

I agree with your review...I did a live posting in CC for our sailing 12/13.....good luck...I even spoke with the loyalty ambassador on the ship..she seemed disinterested and I never received a call from anyone , the hotel director, manager at chops, Izumi....the worst service ever,concierge...and we were in a suite too 

15 hours ago, LadyLion_AP said:

Current on Day 3 of our 9-night NYE sailing on Explorer of the Seas.

 

A little background: My family travels in 3 generations at/near Xmas every year beginning a little over a decade ago (as hubby was deployed to Germany for 2 years & we spent Xmas overseas). We alternate cruise & land vacations each year. 

 

This is our 3rd Xmas cruise with RCCL but have cruised with RCCL multiple times & on most classes of ships.

 

Why I suggest Undercover Boss?

I read the not so great reviews ahead of time so came prepared. I’ll preface my noticings with the fact that we ARE having a great vacation because we’ll be certain to. We work very hard, have invested in a lot of extras to make our vacay even nicer, and we enjoy spending time together...and we LOVE the Ocean!!!!

 

The ugly:

- The ship is not in the best shape. One  example....There are actually windows TAPED shut. (Easy to get past but it definitely doesn’t represent the product well. I’d be embarrassed if I was in charge here!)

-  Overall worst service we’ve experienced on any ship & any cruise line. Yes. Some employees are spectacular but too many are not!

- Worst dining experiences in any venue....by far! We’ve eaten in the MDR, Chops, Giovanni’s, & Johnny Rockets thus far. Giovanni’s has had the best service so far but the food is not comparable to Giovanni’s on other ships. All family members have this opinion.

- My husband still hasn’t met our room steward.

- None of us can tell you the cruise director. Granted we haven’t gone to most shows but that’s typical for us on ships other than Oasis or Quantum class. We have usually seen and/or met the cruise director multiple times by now.

- All of the “little things” are missing: Invitations/Reminders for specialty diners in the stateroom (good thing I wrote them down as my Reservations aren’t accurate on the TV), greetings from the staff, periodic check-ins from the room steward, etc.

- Internet is the worst! We use it mostly to text but hubby does have to work at least one day this cruise. What’s funny is I thought I lost this post to spotty internet twice. Would be surprised if there ends up being duplicate posts!

 

These things probably sound minor as you read it but experiencing it is interesting to say the least. Hubby & I both said today....Had this been our 1st RCCL Cruise, it would certainly be our last. As a reference point....Our two Carnival cruises years ago far surpassed this cruise in quality of product! RCCL should be aware that if this is someone’s first experience, they might be completely turned off.

 

So...As I plan to enjoy the last 6 days on this ship...I plead to RCCL....send an Undercover Boss to this ship & determine if you’re comfortable with this particular representation of your product!

 

giovanni's has the best staff..we were on the sailing before you..say hi to Luzy and rosemarie-servers and shein, manager in giovanni..from Barry/Anneliese Organ....they always had a smile and greeted us..we liked the filet mignon best...better than chops-worst service there...enjoy the rest of your cruise 

10 hours ago, nicstress said:

Thanks for the laughs. I have never eaten a minion but I can imagine they would be CHEWY. And taste like bananas 😜🤣😂🍌🍌🍌

auto correct.....LOL

1 hour ago, Andy C said:

Sorry been slammed with Christmas prep. Plus while the two stories are funny (after the fact) they are by no means cliffhangers! 
 

Merry Christmas! I’ll try to chime in before weeks end. 

merry christmas my friend to you and the family....what's for dinner?

so where is the full recap and the "exciting" event.....I hope to see you on Oasis 12/13/20.....

getting off the ship was a mess......the concierge took us to the front of the line where they check out your sea pass card and then you are on your own....last year on harmony (ft lauderdale) we were taken all the way through to a special customs line..maybe this just how it's done in miami .

IMO, here are my highlights of the good and not so good. 

GOOD:

service at giovanni's, the most friendly servers and good food

being on cruise is always (usually)  better than work

the 2 bedroom GS is really nice....lots of space to stretch out, nice veranda

diamond lounge...lots of light and indoor/outdoor space

guitarist and piano player in schooner bar

comedy shows

the fish in Izumi is very fresh, nice choices

private journey excursion in curacao

#6 over water cabana on Labadee

lunch on Labadee-lobster tails and lamb chops...among other choices

the meet and mingle and seeing people you know throughout the cruise

NOT SO GOOD:

the staff was not friendly....no consistent initiated greetings from staff ....one needed to greet them first 

food and service at Chops was poor

service at Izumi was poor

MDR and Windjammer had really poor food and was always over crowded

not many activities to do during the day

concierge seemed disinterested

small inside room for concierge lounge

"production shows" were boring 

of course all these things are subjective opinions, my views and your view may vary greatly....seemed like the main things to do on this ship were drink alcohol, gamble and lay in the sun....JMO

22 minutes ago, sisocialworker said:

5 hours ago, Andy C said:

Barry, hope you had a nice time.  I would not sail on this ship for free. 

 

Our cruise was nice.  Crew was cold and nowhere near as nice, warm and friendly as Harmony.  
Genie was nice.  We are home now.  

Sorry to hear symphony was so bad, our harmony cruise was exceptional.. the staff treated me (and you guys) the best of any cruise ... even when went back on harmony a few months later, they remembered us and had great service from  the SL and CK staff and Henry the chef, as well as, all other staff on that ship

Last day of this cruise... loved nine nights....breakfast at Giovanni, went to do our galley tour.... very interesting. 
 

we went pick up our free8x10 diamond pictures. And then off to ping pong.... after a quick and small lunch at Azumi.  The manager came over and asked if everything was ok.... it was, as the last time we ate their it wasn’t and I. Told  him,

we then went back to the room to start our packing and relax on the veranda. Watch the wake and read our books. 
 

went out about 5 to listen to some music at the schooner bar before dinner.  Saw our room attendant in the hall, and thanked him for great service and gave him an additional tip.... 

Dinner at Giovanni did not disappoint, they had our calamari and the filet minion was perfect.... everyone there knows our name and always has a smile, gave our servers and manager an additional tip.... they made our trip 

after went to the final show and comedian... funny show.... had the drink of day for $8.00.... 

we walked the ship to take our last looks and enjoy till our next cruise

ended up in the concierge lounge for a cappuccino and back to the room to finish packing, sadist night of the cruise

tomorrow early breakfast and the concierge will escort us off the ship at 8am. Our car service pick up is at 9am

for my last post I will do an overview of what I thought were the good and not so good experiences, IMO

thanks for coming along on my trip.... I look forward to going with you next time