Chadr135

I get annoyed that they still are using paper receipts...How about handing you an ipad to sign where you can add additional gratuity?  So much wasted paper and time! Think green RCCL!

On 5/31/2019 at 9:23 AM, papaflamingo said:

One comment about keeping in touch.  If you both have the Internet package, then before you leave for the cruise, activate "WiFi Calling" on your cell phones.  This is a free service offered by most, if not all, cell carriers in the U.S.  Anyway, when you activate this service, your phone will decide whether the cell signal or the wifi (when you are logged on) is stronger, and will bias your phone into WiFi Calling.  We use it all the time since we have a weak signal in our house, so we are always in "WiFi Calling" at home.  Anyway, when you are on the ship, and you are hooked up to the WiFi, put your phones in "Airplane" mode and make sure WiFi is turned on.  Once the phone is hooked up to the internet, it will automatically go into "WiFi calling" and you will have full functions of your cell phone for FREE.  You can phone, text, etc. just like at home. Oh yeah, you can also phone, text, etc. to anyone in the U.S. with NO CHARGE.   

I have an Iphone.  To check to make sure it's in "WiFi calling," I simply check the upper left corner where it shows what carrier it is on.  We have Verizon, so when I look, it says "VZW Wi-Fi"   This shows that the phone is in WiFi calling.  If it shows anything else, it's not.  Again, you can do this in port at any internet cafe, etc.  Also since the Ship and ports all offer strong cell coverage, you need to go to Airplane Mode to bias it.  At your house, the phone will automatically decide based on signal strength.

Great tip!!

I would just assume that I would be in the "worst" location for that cabin class.  If you are ok with those less favorable cabin locations or just aren't picky then go for it!  

I've never tried this option as I'm not confident in their choice(s).  Plus I have to research the cabin before I book, because I'm crazy like that! 🙂

If you're trying to save a few bucks, I'd personally do it in another area. 🙂 

Thanks Dave.

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Does anyone know the minimum age or weight for the bumper cars?

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It wouldn't bother me unless the baby was crying. I have more important things to worry about...Where is the next drink, should I take a dip in the pool, which book to read next...? You catch my drift. :)

I think some people are getting the bad end of a new ship with new methods and systems...Some people aren't. I'm assuming that things will improve on the ship as problems get worked out and reviews will reflect that.

Hopefully things will improve by the 20th of next month!

Just read this article by by Paul Motter posted today in another cruise website, Monday, 05 Jan. 2015

 

I like what was mentioned about Devinly Decadent. :)

 

 

Dynamic Dining Hiccups

 

We interview the Food & Beverage Manager for Quantum, Director of Dynamic Dining

 

Quantum of the Seas is the newest ship from Royal Caribbean, and as all Royal Caribbean fans know, it has a completely new approach to cruise ship dining that has never been tried by Royal Caribbean before, let alone other cruise lines. This new concept is called “Dynamic Dining,” and the idea is to let everyone on board pick a different restaurant, each with its own unique cuisine, each night of the cruise. This is a far cry from “traditional dining” where there is one (or more) dining rooms for everyone on board, and most people eat in the same dining room, the same table and at the same time each night of the cruise.

 

Every other Royal Caribbean ship, and most cruise ships in general, have this traditional dining, plus most have also added a version of “free style” dining where each diner can opt to dine in a different place each night, or at the least a different time or table.

 

But Quantum of the Seas’ “Dynamic Dining” forces everyone into that more “free style” approach; it is mandatory for everyone to pick a different restaurant each night of the cruise. Furthermore, each restaurant has a completely different menu, so this also means choosing from among a variety of different cuisines every night.

 

As you can imagine – getting a group of people to agree on anything has its challenges, and Quantum has been facing a number of them. But, just because Royal Caribbean implemented this new concept, it is not accurate to say it that every hiccup is the fault of the cruise line, as with any new concept, a big part of the challenge to getting dynamic dining to a smooth roll out is getting the passengers on board with the program.

 

For example, we just interviewed Catalin Buta, the current Food & Beverage manager for Quantum, and he told us that right now only about 64% of the passengers onboard booked their restaurant reservations online before the cruise started. The means roughly 1/3 of the guests onboard are “winging it” when it comes to dining; either they did not realize Quantum has a new system where there is no main dining room, or else no one in their party was able to coordinate everyone to get them to agree on dining times and cuisine for each night of the cruise in advance.

 

Right now there are two interfaces for people to make dining reservations, online pre-cruise at the Royal Caribbean web site, as mentioned, or after they get on the cruise through a special “APP” made only for iPhones or iPads called “Royal IQ” that must be downloaded from the web before the cruise begins (through the Apple iStore).

 

I asked Buta how many people who do not book ahead of time actually use the App to make reservations once they get on the cruise, and he replied “almost everyone.” I have my doubts, because even he did not know the APP still has not been written for download to Android devices (which represent 2/3 of all smart phones in use in both the U.S. and China – where this ship is headed in May). Strangely – there is no way to access the “Royal IQ” app on a laptop, either. You must have an iPad or an iPhone.

 

Other Hiccups

 

So, in fact, on our first night onboard as we stood in line with about 20 other people – even though we had arrived early for our 7:00 reservation time for Silk, we listened to the restaurant manager asking people if they had reservations and at what time, and we heard everything from “no reservation (most people) to 6:45 (it was already 7:00) and 7:15 (but they were ahead of us in line).

 

Granted –there was a sign designating that people with “No Reservation” should take the line on the left, and “People with Reservations” should take the line on the right, but everyone was in the right hand line and the manager did not seem to be concerned about that.

 

Inside, service was slow, especially bar service but also the bussing of tables was sadly lacking. We looked around and saw dozens of empty tables that just needed to be bussed, while there were still a couple dozen people waiting in line inside to get seated. Obviously, one lesson Royal Caribbean has received about Dynamic Dining is that it takes more people to operate it than they originally anticipated (why, we do not know).

 

Dynamic Dining Fixes

 

Buta just confirmed plans to increase the number of food & beverage crewmembers by an estimated 30%, he said. Another thing they have discovered is that there are not enough open seats for people in the “no fee” dining venues. Buta said it is very likely that one of the currently highly touted “fee” restaurants – “Divinely Decadent” will be changed into one of the “no fee” dynamic dining restaurants.

 

Another challenge is everyone wants the same dining time: 7:00, so that time slot fills up long before each cruise. Based on what we saw, there were a lot of people showing up at our restaurant with no reservations, and of course, most with no reservations came at 7:00. So Buta is assigning dining times to the people with no reservations during the first two days of the cruise and leaving notes in their staterooms. They can “accept” his times dining times or change them with the Royal IQ App or by calling the restaurants.

 

Obviously, what this points out is that everyone needs a reservation every night for dinner, and also for any shows you want to see. It brings up a very valid question as to whether this is better than the old system of “traditional dining” where you simply ate at the same place & time every night, but the menu changed each night. Everyone also saw the same show each night, but it changed every night of the cruise. Now each show shows repeatedly, but fewer people get to see it every time, and you need reservations. You would think this would result in more entertainment, but in fact this ship feels like there is less entertainment on board.

 

Another challenge is that the ship cannot control when people leave, and seems that many people are “lingering” in each restaurant. To get them to clear out, Buta said the line plans to adjust the entertainment show time schedules to motivate people to leave earlier – but right now the app is not capable of showing people when making a reservation causes a conflicts between scheduled show times and dinnertime reservations – another refinement needed for Royal IQ.

 

The Upside

 

Quantum has an excellent variety of foods. The "Windjammer" buffet area is very efficient, and the 270Cafe (the small quick cafe behind the 270 Lounge, is as Buta said "a homerun". Also, our dinner in "Jamie's Italian" last night was truthfully one of the best cruise ship dinners I have ever had - breathtaking, It started with black truffle pasta in just a touch of olive oil, followed by brick-smashed lamb chops that I finished with my fingers.

 

Dynamic Dining Delayed on Oasis and Allure.

 

Both Oasis and the twin sister ship, Allure, were scheduled to start doing their own versions of dynamic dining in March 2015, but because of the unexpected glitches that have cropped up here on Quantum, that has been delayed.

 

Naturally, all of this is really being perfected for future ships, more so than for this ship, because this ship is scheduled to re-position too Shanghai, China, in May 2015. However, a sister ship to this one called Anthem of the Seas, is coming to the UK in May and will arrive in Bayonne, NJ, in November 2015 to replace this ship. A third ship of this class is also coming out and will be positioned in Florida.

 

Both of those ships will have Dynamic Dining, and by then we assume all the glitches will be worked out. The delays, however, can be largely attributed to two things, however; (1) the time it takes for cruisers to understand how important it is to make dinner reservations at the beginning of the cruise, and (2) that it requires more staff-members to implement dynamic dining than the line first figured; mostly busboys, waiters, cooks, “everything” according to Buta.

 

Going to China

 

When it comes to how this ship will look when it gets to China – Buta said the cuisine will be entirely different. The truth is that Chinese locals have completely different tastes from what you might expect if your only experience is with “American Chinese Food.” In fact, there is very little similarity. Buta said the food will be changed to reflect local tastes. The new Food and Beverage manager for Quantum in China is coming to join the ship next week, and he has just spent the last few years on Royal Caribbean ships already in China, Like Mariner and Voyager.

 

In addition, Royal Caribbean has set up a school to train new waiters and food service people in Tianjin, China, the port city for Beijing. This school is already open, and it will train each person for at least two weeks before they join the ship in China

Thank you for posting this interview, it was very informative. We hope the staff levels will increase by our cruise late next month!

Anyone on board ready to play Rumikub?

 

We arrived at 11:45. The car line waiting to drop off wasn't bad at all. If you took your security pictures in advance that will save lots of time. I parked the car after dropping off bags and it was a short walk from the car to the pier.

 

 

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How much did it cost to park at the pier? We are loving the updates and reviews, thanks so much and enjoy!

I assume the staff on Labadee will honor a beverage package?

I would never sail on a new ship until it's been working for a few months to work out the glitches. Anyone who books sooner than that should expect the glitches and shouldn't complain about them. Just my opinion!

I love this announcement. I don't care about the luggage tracker, but with two little ones I would LOVE to get from car to ship in ten minutes!! I also really like the tablets for the crew and the robots making drinks...Yes a bit gimmicky but cool nonetheless. :)

We booked a hump balcony solely for the reason our rep. told us over the phone that it would be a bigger balcony.

At least TRY to make it seem less like a commercial. Haha

We have used both lines several times and we like RCCL more. NCL is good, but we found RCCL's customer service on the ship to be superior, especially in the dining rooms. We also weren't pleased that in the main dining room, we saw the same menu EVERYDAY for breakfast and lunch (95% sure on lunch).

RCCL #1, Celebrity #2, NCL #3, and we have never and will not use Carnival.

I've never been on Carnival but friends/family have said bad things...I'm assuming they are the cheapest for a reason! We love RCCL and Celebrity.

Our last cruise was on Celebrity and we loved it. A great upgrade from RCCL - everything felt a bit more luxurious - also less kids. I hope that helps!