Quantum Queries

Thinking of booking a cruise on the Quantum Of The Seas next year,out of Bejing,I have read some interesting comments about her being very 'Orient' biased,due to her base,& that language,signage,etc on board is predominately in Chinese & could cause problems for Westerners,I find it rather surprising that RCI(or any cruise line for that matter) would let that happen,grateful if anybody who has recent experience of sailing on her could advise on this situation.

Also we are considering a suite for the cruise,the very least would be a balcony stateroom,just curious to hear peoples thoughts on the size of the balconies,hopefully not as pitifully small as on P&O's Britannia,I have viewed a number of videos of her but none of them showed the balcony.

Hi

We just got back Ovation which sailed from Hong Kong and had about 4000 people from HK/ China on board.

The signage on the ship is in Chinese and English, we found there was a lot of Chinese crew on board but also a lot of other nationalities and they all spoke English.

There was an English speaking cruise director and and a mandarin speaking activities manager.

We got used to all announcements being made in both languages.

We had a balcony and found it to be a good size, we had two chairs and a table on there and still plenty of room to walk around. Friends had a Grand Suite and it was a nice size with two loungers, a full size table and 4 chairs and still room to move around.

We enjoyed it and have booked for the Quantum next year.

Hope this helps.

Thinking of booking a cruise on the Quantum Of The Seas next year,out of Bejing,I have read some interesting comments about her being very 'Orient' biased,due to her base,& that language,signage,etc on board is predominately in Chinese & could cause problems for Westerners,I find it rather surprising that RCI(or any cruise line for that matter) would let that happen,grateful if anybody who has recent experience of sailing on her could advise on this situation.

Also we are considering a suite for the cruise,the very least would be a balcony stateroom,just curious to hear peoples thoughts on the size of the balconies,hopefully not as pitifully small as on P&O's Britannia,I have viewed a number of videos of her but none of them showed the balcony.

ALL SIGNS ARE IN ENGLISH and Chinese. Like all cruises, the majority of the people on the ship, will be from the departing country, so the Quantum will have mostly people from China. All employees of RCCL are required to speak English. The Ship, and the currency on the ship is USD. The food, is normal RCCL food, with some Asian dishes added.. Entertainment is a mixed bag, but some of it, is non-language. All shows, and entertainment is announced in both languages. The cruise is listed as "culture enrichment" because you will find it predominate Asian. However, the cruise itself, and the ports, and experiences are wonderful, and I highly recommend the ship. Just know it is different and go with the flow. The size of all the rooms are on the webpage. Yes, I sailed on her last year.

Thinking of booking a cruise on the Quantum Of The Seas next year,out of Bejing,I have read some interesting comments about her being very 'Orient' biased,due to her base,& that language,signage,etc on board is predominately in Chinese & could cause problems for Westerners,I find it rather surprising that RCI(or any cruise line for that matter) would let that happen,grateful if anybody who has recent experience of sailing on her could advise on this situation.

Also we are considering a suite for the cruise,the very least would be a balcony stateroom,just curious to hear peoples thoughts on the size of the balconies,hopefully not as pitifully small as on P&O's Britannia,I have viewed a number of videos of her but none of them showed the balcony.

Why? Because everything should revolve around Americans? :rolleyes:

Why? Because everything should revolve around Americans? :rolleyes:

Odd response IMO but not being American I certainly wouldn't think that way but knowing that all cruises,wherever they are based are likely to include people from various parts of the world it would seem strange that any cruise line would make life difficult for its customers,not good publicity surely.

Many thanks for those who have responded with helpful posts!

Why? Because everything should revolve around Americans? :rolleyes:

The poster was talking about "English" and not "American". The USA does not have an official language but the official government language is English. Now getting back to the question, English is the most widely spoken language in the world, with more education systems around the world teaching it and even making it mandatory to be taught in their schools. So for a cruise line not to offer English on board, would be generally a bad business practice. His question was already answered. By the way, I highly recommend that you go on a true international cruise to experience other cultures.

Why? Because everything should revolve around Americans? :rolleyes:

The poster was talking about "English" and not "American". The USA does not have an official language but the official government language is English. Now getting back to the question, English is the most widely spoken language in the world, with more education systems around the world teaching it and even making it mandatory to be taught in their schools. So for a cruise line not to offer English on board, would be generally a bad business practice. His question was already answered. By the way, I highly recommend that you go on a true international cruise to experience other cultures.

First... English is NOT the most natively spoken language, only when you consider it as a second language, does it become most prominent.

Second... Why in the world would YOU suggest that *I* go on a "true" international cruise? A stop for less than one day, at an international port does NOT equal "experiencing other cultures." LOL that is too funny.

Third... In my travels, I have seen it many times. Americans who act like the natives of another country are inconveniencing them, because the do not speak English. Actually have witnessed old men and women basically throwing tantrums over it.

Lastly.. to the OP - You said "or any cruise line, would let that happen" Well, you don't see our ships that leave from Miami, Tampa, Galveston, LA, NY have signs in Chinese do you? Chinese is actually the most natively spoken language in the world... so why would you not expect the same on ships that leave from here?

The cruises that are based in Asia and around the world, are not put there for "Americans" to come experience, they are put there because of the demand of that local market. Same applies here.

Not sure if you're aware that English is the #2 language spoke WORLD WIDE not just in America. American is not a language but hey, you're a smart RN I'm sure you know that. ;)

I never said "American" was a language. I said Americans, as in the people who are in America.

Chinese is the number 1 language in the world.. I don't see Chinese on signs in the ships leaving from the US. :confused:

First... English is NOT the most natively spoken language, only when you consider it as a second language, does it become most prominent.

 

Second... Why in the world would YOU suggest that *I* go on a "true" international cruise? A stop for less than one day, at an international port does NOT equal "experiencing other cultures." LOL that is too funny.

 

Quantum of the seas leaves from China, and goes to other international ports. The entire cruise is an International experience, along with a pre or post stay in the country. Same goes for European cruises leaving from ports/countries where English is only a taught language, and not the spoken language. That's a true International cruise. That's a little more than a day.

 

Third... In my travels, I have seen it many times. Americans who act like the natives of another country are inconveniencing them, because the do not speak English. Actually have witnessed old men and women basically throwing tantrums over it.

 

That is true, but not really the question. The question revolved around if English was available on a ship, that is owned and operated by a company out of an English speaking country.

 

Lastly.. to the OP - You said "or any cruise line, would let that happen" Well, you don't see our ships that leave from Miami, Tampa, Galveston, LA, NY have signs in Chinese do you? Chinese is actually the most natively spoken language in the world... so why would you not expect the same on ships that leave from here?

 

RCCL leaves from San Juan, and the primary language on the ship is Spanish, with English spoken as secondary. Plus RCCL is not a Chinese ship, so any company that is Flagged from an English country, the expectation would be that English would be on the ship. That's why, Chinese is not on the ship, from leaving the USA.

 

The cruises that are based in Asia and around the world, are not put there for "Americans" to come experience, they are put there because of the demand of that local market. Same applies here.

I would say a good 30 plus percent of people on an International cruise, is not "local". In some cases, I would say the percentage is much higher. I'm not saying from the USA, but rather, just not "local".

First... English is NOT the most natively spoken language, only when you consider it as a second language, does it become most prominent.

 

Second... Why in the world would YOU suggest that *I* go on a "true" international cruise? A stop for less than one day, at an international port does NOT equal "experiencing other cultures." LOL that is too funny.

 

Quantum of the seas leaves from China, and goes to other international ports. The entire cruise is an International experience, along with a pre or post stay in the country. Same goes for European cruises leaving from ports/countries where English is only a taught language, and not the spoken language. That's a true International cruise. That's a little more than a day.

 

Sorry.. but many European cruises are a different country every day. While I will likely take a Med cruise, I still would not consider that experiencing the local culture. My opinion only, you can feel that it is a sufficient experience for you, if you wish.

 

Third... In my travels, I have seen it many times. Americans who act like the natives of another country are inconveniencing them, because the do not speak English. Actually have witnessed old men and women basically throwing tantrums over it.

 

That is true, but not really the question. The question revolved around if English was available on a ship, that is owned and operated by a company out of an English speaking country.

 

 

No.. if you go back and look at what I highlighted in my first post, that is the part I was responding to. I do not need to respond to all questions in a post, in order to post. I made it clear what I was responding to.

 

Lastly.. to the OP - You said "or any cruise line, would let that happen" Well, you don't see our ships that leave from Miami, Tampa, Galveston, LA, NY have signs in Chinese do you? Chinese is actually the most natively spoken language in the world... so why would you not expect the same on ships that leave from here?

 

RCCL leaves from San Juan, and the primary language on the ship is Spanish, with English spoken as secondary. Plus RCCL is not a Chinese ship, so any company that is Flagged from an English country, the expectation would be that English would be on the ship. That's why, Chinese is not on the ship, from leaving the USA.

Flags of registry are for convenience to the operator. So the expectation you are referring to is a little off.

 

The cruises that are based in Asia and around the world, are not put there for "Americans" to come experience, they are put there because of the demand of that local market. Same applies here.

I would say a good 30 plus percent of people on an International cruise, is not "local". In some cases, I would say the percentage is much higher. I'm not saying from the USA, but rather, just not "local".

 

I think your 30% guess is a little off for RCI/CCL/NCL departing from US ports. Nevertheless, you are making my point. You don't see those other languages posted on signs on the ship here, so why would you necessarily see them on sailings where the predominant population on board, is say.. Chinese. Registry has nothing to do with it.

 

While English is the official maritime language, that does not extend to passengers. Just sayin.. before someone brings that up.

LOL looking at that post it is hard to tell who posted what. Mine are in red.

While English is the official maritime language, that does not extend to passengers. Just sayin.. before someone brings that up.

 

LOL looking at that post it is hard to tell who posted what. Mine are in red.

Was surprised myself. English isn't number one Native Language spoken but it is number one language "Spoken" at 1.12 Billion. Followed by Mandarin at 1.10 Billion, Hindustani 697.4 Million and then Spanish at 512.9 Million...

Why? Because everything should revolve around Americans? :rolleyes:

Cruise lines are similar in manner to airline companies. If you want an American experience, select an American cruise line. If your preference is Spain, then you would select a Spanish cruise company, British, a British cruise line, etc..

I would be disappointed to travel with a Spanish or Italian cruise company and find an American cruise line experience on it. RCCL is an American company so English is always spoken (but many other languages are too), many meals are American style and USD is the onboard currency.

ALL SIGNS ARE IN ENGLISH and Chinese. Like all cruises, the majority of the people on the ship, will be from the departing country, so the Quantum will have mostly people from China. All employees of RCCL are required to speak English.

 

Yes... though there are primary Chinese speakers who will struggle to speak English so will direct you to someone else.

However, point being is that there are English speakers in each service area.

The Ship, and the currency on the ship is USD. The food, is normal RCCL food, with some Asian dishes added..

 

Wouldn't categorise it as that. Being Asian based, most dishes cater for that market. Though as a US cruise line there are also some dishes for international guests. Basically, there's a subset of the usual US range food wise.

Entertainment is a mixed bag, but some of it, is non-language.

And some is Chinese only. But others cater for both so you still have options, just a little fewer.

 

The cruises that are based in Asia and around the world, are not put there for "Americans" to come experience, they are put there because of the demand of that local market. Same applies here.

I wish you would get away from the Americans idea,if the cruises are there purely for the demand of the local market why are the cruises marketed vigorously worldwide,obviously attracting people with different languages,I see cruises marketed sailing from ports all over the world,the points of call on this particular cruise happen to appeal,it has nothing to do with choosing a particular cruise line.

I wish you would get away from the Americans idea,if the cruises are there purely for the demand of the local market why are the cruises marketed vigorously worldwide,obviously attracting people with different languages,I see cruises marketed sailing from ports all over the world,the points of call on this particular cruise happen to appeal,it has nothing to do with choosing a particular cruise line.

Actually I'd say both are true. It's neither exclusively for Americans, nor exclusively for locals.

In the case of Chinese cruises they are trying to build a local market, to the extent it's often 90%+ locals on Quantum cruises, but they're certainly happy to take their traditional market too, especially at off-peak times locally.

It will be interesting to see if there are any changes instituted for its 6-month season in Singapore next year. For example, whether they will bring in genies and institute Royal Suite Class or whether they will stick to their system for China cruises.

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well getting back to the OP comments, westerners would also include Canada and Mexico as well as Europe(unless you look east that is). Meaning RCI and other cruise lines are considered American owned and while they provide experiences for the local port of Departure, they also will keep in mind that Americans (north, central and south) might be on those ships and they would need to provide signage and communications.

The bigger issue is the cultural differences. Food, moving around the ship, music etc etc.

I have heard that the experience on Ovation and Quantum can be quite rewarding if you remember that the Asian culture is fast paced. They move fast and at times can be pushy and shovey. But it is not meant to be mean to others. Just their way.

BTW "orient" is no longer used. They are called Asians.

I would go ahead and book the trip