vcr_traveler515

We just got off the Crown Princess and found that the overall journey was satisfactory. Our arrival at Curaçao was delayed by a further 3 hours due to adverse current and strong head wind. Original arrival was 8 a.m., rescheduled to 11 a.m. prior to sailing, actual arrival was 2 p.m. There was a big rush to the gangways once the ship docked at Curaçao. As a result, all the excursions were rescheduled and only one was cancelled. The ship was travelling at 18.7 knots on the first sea day but only managed 15.8 knots on the second sea day. This was according to my Medallion App. The ship was making a lot of noise trying to maintain the speed as there was a constant 84 beats per minute drum-like noise heard in the Botticelli dining room on deck 6 aft. I checked to make sure it was not coming from the Club Fusion above. The noise disappeared when the ship was travelling between the ports at lower speeds. It appeared again when we were racing back to Ft. Lauderdale at 18.9 knots with the tailwinds. So it appears that the ship is fulfilling its tasks for now with one generator down. 

My wife and I will be boarding the Crown Princess on Feb. 5 for a 10 day Southern Caribbean cruise. I wish to thank all CruiseCritic members who contributed so much to the forum regarding the generator problem. It gives me a much better idea what we are getting into. We will miss Grenada and have $75 OBC each. The only cloud on the horizon is that windy conditions are expected at Curaçao and Bonaire, our first two ports of call. I will update fellow members at the conclusion of my cruise.

We (two couples) are booked on the Feb. 5 cruise and received the email from Princess today (Jan. 7). Our concerns include the timing of the Curaçao excursion we booked through Princess that starts at 9 am and the cancellation of the Grenada port visit. Our Grenada excursion was also booked through Princess. I think Princess has enough experience to handle the change in itinerary and will give them a few days to make things right.

Correction:

Third sentence should read

After my friend was flown home, VO moved me to a Penthouse Veranda cabin because my wife was worried there were problems with glass in the same section.

I am the friend of Vacationeer15 that is still onboard. Thank you for rotating the pics. We had Deluxe Veranda cabins next to each other on Deck 4. After my friend was flown home, VO moved me to a Penthouse Veranda cabin because was worried there were problems with the glass in the same section. They all have curved glass edge. There seemed to be some maintenance activities going on regarding the bathrooms but there was no onboard notice to passengers. I am still taking the precautions that I posted until I finish the cruise on Aug. 22

I am still onboard and I am glad to see Viking’s actios posted today but I am not completely at ease with the glass panel. I think the ship's crew has done a very good job making up for the amended itinerary. There are still minor hiccups onboard but nothing that really bothers me. For the Sept. 3 passengers, I think it is probably safe for you to have an enjoyable cruise experience.

My friend is back in Vancouver and has not settled with VO yet, so he is free to speak his mind. I think he just wants to put the whole incident behind him.

I agree that Viking Customer Service can probably do a much better job in handling these extraordinary situations. I think they have to learn that handling an ocean liner with 920 passengers onboard is different than a river cruise with 190 passengers.

Photo of normal shower:

The centre fuzzy line is the curved glass edge and the metal line on the left is the door edge. The metallic circle is a hole in the shower door that acts as the door handle.

My friend flew home because his wife did not feel safe onboard. I was present when they were told that all of the available cabins onboard had glass shower stall only.

Please note that in this case, it was not the shower door that exploded, but the side panel with the curved corner that shattered. It looks from Colorado Traveller‘s photo that it was also the side panel that exploded.

I think that it is reasonable that Viking may not have the problem figured out right the way, but they should at least take some immediate measures to protect the safety of the current passengers. As Wendy the Wanderer said, such measures could include putting on a plastic film to prevent glass from flying in case of explosion. Short of action from Viking, I think the three measures I mentioned in my previous post are the only things current passengers can take to reduce the risk of injuries.

My main concern is that Viking is not addressing the safety problem immediately and directly, rather they are more concerned about their public relations.

My friend staying in the cabin next to mine experienced the exploding shower glass wall on Aug. 10, 2015 while the ship was in port in Copenhagen. The glass side wall exploded outwards while he was taking his shower. Viking tried to deny this happened before but we found out from various sources that it actually happened. Luckily he only suffered very minor injuries but if his wife was in the bathroom at the same time, she would have suffered the same serious injuries as Colorado traveller. The way Customer Service handled the incident was less than professional. However certain staff were exemplary in their handling of the incident, including a dining room manager, the nurse and the doctor. My friend has been flown home by Viking and will be posting a full account with photos in the next day or so. Viking still does not know why the glass shower wall (not the door) are exploding. BE AWARE. In the mean time, we are still on the cruise and we are taking the following precautions: no one else in the bathroom while the shower is in use, open the shower an inch while showering, and opening the bathroom door while showering.