Independence 12/7/17 Worst Cruise Ever!!!

Royal's new excuse for a suboptimal experience is that a dry dock is coming...

And sometimes because the ship is fresh out of dry dock and things were still being finished up. I remember once, I think it was Grandeur but I could be wrong, the ship was put back into service when the Windjammer was not even finished and unavailable for the sailing.

Royal's new excuse for a suboptimal experience is that a dry dock is coming...

As it has always been... it is your right to vote with your wallet to not spend money with the company if their product is unacceptable to you.

As it has always been... it is your right to vote with your wallet to not spend money with the company if their product is unacceptable to you.

This thread makes me glad I said "never again" to RCL after one unenchanting horror of a cruise on one of their ships.

In that case, why waste your time on a RCI message board?

I think some are being a little hard on the OP. While I used to take an eyeroll approach to these types of posts, I recently had a "worst cruise ever" experience myself. I think what we need to clarify is, this is the worst cruise WE OURSELVES have ever experienced. Is it better than being at work? Definitely. Did it live up to the precedence that RC has shown they are capable of? Not even close. My "worst cruise ever" was November 11 on Freedom. Service was not up to par, and it seemed to be a very unhappy crew. DR service was excellent, as always, but service in the Windjammer was nonexistent, and very few crew greeted us about the ship with a smile and a hello, as we are accustomed to. On two occasions, we actually heard crew cursing the captain. The language was so foul from the Flowrider crew on our last day, that I actually got up and left the area where I was reading. It was just a very unhappy crew. It was also the first time that we had an issue with the food. Now, food is subjective, and I've always read negative reviews with a grain of salt, because honestly, if you can't find something to eat, you've got a problem, right? Well, I am telling you, this was the saddest buffet I've ever seen on a ship. There literally was nothing we found that we liked. After the first few days, we would walk through the WJ, realize again that the pickings were slim, and we'd head to Sorrentos. I've never eaten so much pizza in my life. The buffet was just strange. For example, the salad bar lacked any kind of toppings. We never saw cheese, bacon or croutons the entire week. That is always our go-to at lunch, those great salads! On many days, the only dressings available bleu cheese, raspberry vinaigrette, and honey mustard. Strange offerings, and no ranch to be found. How do you not have ranch? One day I tried a chicken dish, and it honestly was inedible. I love the WJ, and I've never seen anything like this. MDR food was average at best. I'm so cruise obsessed, I can tell you what I'm having every night of the week, before I've even booked the cruise. I love the food! This was not the best. Several times entrees were served with sides that were not what was listed on the menu, and sometimes what was served differed from plate to plate. On the last night, my tablemate and I both ordered the seafood mash, and hers came with peas and mashed potatoes as advertised, but mine came only with some strange pumpkin and squash side I've never seen. I really wanted those peas and potatoes... (yes, of course all I had to do was ask, I know. Just making a point.) On one night, a tablemate ordered the angus beef sliders, and proclaimed them the best burger he'd had all week. (I have no idea what the soy burgers were in the WJ this time, but they were worse than the old school cafeteria burgers. Weird.) He ordered them the next night, and they were totally different. A hand formed patty the first night, and some strange sausage looking thing the next night, that looked like it had been sliced from a roll. It looked gross, and he said it tasted off, as well. We have never experienced this kind of inconsistency. We also had a terrible experience in Johnny Rockets. We LOVE JR, and look forward to having it twice or more a cruise. We were completely ignored for about 10 minutes while we waited to be acknowledged to be seated, then when we asked if someone could seat us, we were actually told "that's not my section." There are plenty of empty tables... We finally sat ourselves, then had to flag a waiter down, only to be told again, this isn't my section. What the heck? We are used to dancing and being made paper flowers in JR, what's going on? Once we got waited on, service was poor and the food not up to par. We were charged the $6.95 cover, and also charged for soft drinks, which I though was now included with the increased cover. We went back a second time, with marginally better service, and this time were not charged for soft drinks. ???

So, my point in this long response, is to agree with the OP, in that there can be a "worst" cruise. I'm not swearing off RC, by any means, but I will admit this was the first cruise that I was actually ready to get off the ship and go home. While we are not complainers, we did stop at guest services and ask for our gratuities to be removed on the last day, and explained that the service was lacking. We tipped our MDR staff and room steward well in cash. And as an aside, I waited in line over an hour to have that conversation at guest services, and was assured that when my bill came in the morning, the gratuities would be removed. Any guesses what happened? Here comes another 30 minutes at guest services, only to be told they couldn't do it right now, but would take care of it later. Hmmmm... Luckily, it was removed. I hope this cruise was just a fluke, but I must agree with the OP, that a worst cruise is a possibility. Best of luck, next time. :)

This thread makes me glad I said "never again" to RCL after one unenchanting horror of a cruise on one of their ships.

Did you come back to this board just so you could say "never again" a couple more times?

That's right. I wouldn't go back.

You can't give a dining room review if you only go once. That's ridiculous.

What if you went once and found everything excellent? Then went all the other nights and found far worse.

It can happen both ways FYI

As it has always been...

No, it has not "always been". 27 years cruising this line and lately the quality of the product is subpar.

I appreciate those that post their opinions and experiences concerning their cruises but has absolutely no influence concerning our choices.

I appreciate those that post their opinions and experiences concerning their cruises but has absolutely no influence concerning our choices.

I agree with you,we have always had great cruises with RCI so i read with interest other people's views but it doesn't change my opinion.

I agree with you,we have always had great cruises with RCI so i read with interest other people's views but it doesn't change my opinion.

Same here. I do read other posters opinions with interest but since I have my own experiences with RCI to fall back on other people's views don't sway me much.

There is a recent post on FB that the current cruise on Indy is being hit heavily with Noro

Yep - and we are headed out aboard her tomorrow....oh boy

I am definitely not a complainer, but I can't help myself this time!! The food and the service was terrible everywhere except Giovanni's. The Main Dining Room was vile. We only ate there 1 night. There was a piece of aluminum foil in my daughter's mashed potatoes!! The staff just did not care. I didn't bother to escalate it because we saw it before she ate it. In Chops the service was so bad our dinner took 3 hours!! In the Windjammer, the first morning everything was OK, after that it was awful. The bacon looked like it was always left over from Day 1. I truly hope that it was just this ship, but I am afraid of an overall decline. The Bar service was very slow, with long waits.

And here I was this entire time thinking the Titanic was the worst cruise ever....

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No, it has not "always been". 27 years cruising this line and lately the quality of the product is subpar.

Since when did lately mean the last 5 or 6 years, I have been reading you post this? I always think lately last month, last quarter, etc.... you give lately a whole new meaning. I am trying to remember when you thought RCI was great. O wait you never ever posted any of that....

JC

Since when did lately mean the last 5 or 6 years, I have been reading you post this? I always think lately last month, last quarter, etc.... you give lately a whole new meaning. I am trying to remember when you thought RCI was great. O wait you never ever posted any of that....

 

JC

Because your research is not thorough does mean not I have never been complimentary about RCI on here. I have posted many reviews of ships, CD's, restaurants, staff, events, etc. on here with praise. But I am not in the candy coating business so I'll point out subpar when deserved.

I think some are being a little hard on the OP. While I used to take an eyeroll approach to these types of posts, I recently had a "worst cruise ever" experience myself. I think what we need to clarify is, this is the worst cruise WE OURSELVES have ever experienced. Is it better than being at work? Definitely. Did it live up to the precedence that RC has shown they are capable of? Not even close. My "worst cruise ever" was November 11 on Freedom. Service was not up to par, and it seemed to be a very unhappy crew. DR service was excellent, as always, but service in the Windjammer was nonexistent, and very few crew greeted us about the ship with a smile and a hello, as we are accustomed to. On two occasions, we actually heard crew cursing the captain. The language was so foul from the Flowrider crew on our last day, that I actually got up and left the area where I was reading. It was just a very unhappy crew. It was also the first time that we had an issue with the food. Now, food is subjective, and I've always read negative reviews with a grain of salt, because honestly, if you can't find something to eat, you've got a problem, right? Well, I am telling you, this was the saddest buffet I've ever seen on a ship. There literally was nothing we found that we liked. After the first few days, we would walk through the WJ, realize again that the pickings were slim, and we'd head to Sorrentos. I've never eaten so much pizza in my life. The buffet was just strange. For example, the salad bar lacked any kind of toppings. We never saw cheese, bacon or croutons the entire week. That is always our go-to at lunch, those great salads! On many days, the only dressings available bleu cheese, raspberry vinaigrette, and honey mustard. Strange offerings, and no ranch to be found. How do you not have ranch? One day I tried a chicken dish, and it honestly was inedible. I love the WJ, and I've never seen anything like this. MDR food was average at best. I'm so cruise obsessed, I can tell you what I'm having every night of the week, before I've even booked the cruise. I love the food! This was not the best. Several times entrees were served with sides that were not what was listed on the menu, and sometimes what was served differed from plate to plate. On the last night, my tablemate and I both ordered the seafood mash, and hers came with peas and mashed potatoes as advertised, but mine came only with some strange pumpkin and squash side I've never seen. I really wanted those peas and potatoes... (yes, of course all I had to do was ask, I know. Just making a point.) On one night, a tablemate ordered the angus beef sliders, and proclaimed them the best burger he'd had all week. (I have no idea what the soy burgers were in the WJ this time, but they were worse than the old school cafeteria burgers. Weird.) He ordered them the next night, and they were totally different. A hand formed patty the first night, and some strange sausage looking thing the next night, that looked like it had been sliced from a roll. It looked gross, and he said it tasted off, as well. We have never experienced this kind of inconsistency. We also had a terrible experience in Johnny Rockets. We LOVE JR, and look forward to having it twice or more a cruise. We were completely ignored for about 10 minutes while we waited to be acknowledged to be seated, then when we asked if someone could seat us, we were actually told "that's not my section." There are plenty of empty tables... We finally sat ourselves, then had to flag a waiter down, only to be told again, this isn't my section. What the heck? We are used to dancing and being made paper flowers in JR, what's going on? Once we got waited on, service was poor and the food not up to par. We were charged the $6.95 cover, and also charged for soft drinks, which I though was now included with the increased cover. We went back a second time, with marginally better service, and this time were not charged for soft drinks. ???

 

So, my point in this long response, is to agree with the OP, in that there can be a "worst" cruise. I'm not swearing off RC, by any means, but I will admit this was the first cruise that I was actually ready to get off the ship and go home. While we are not complainers, we did stop at guest services and ask for our gratuities to be removed on the last day, and explained that the service was lacking. We tipped our MDR staff and room steward well in cash. And as an aside, I waited in line over an hour to have that conversation at guest services, and was assured that when my bill came in the morning, the gratuities would be removed. Any guesses what happened? Here comes another 30 minutes at guest services, only to be told they couldn't do it right now, but would take care of it later. Hmmmm... Luckily, it was removed. I hope this cruise was just a fluke, but I must agree with the OP, that a worst cruise is a possibility. Best of luck, next time. :)

So, I spend most of my cruises with the flowrider crew. I have seen some passengers doing things on the flowrider that they know they are not allowed to do. I have never seen the flowrider crew go into anything like you described. I am guessing that your sailing had some of the worst passengers to ever sail a cruise ship to get those people to that level of anger. Heck, I sailed with 1500 spring break college students and never heard that...

Sometimes the customers can bring the staff down to their level... just sayin....

I am diamond plus and I have never eaten in Johnny Rockets except for breakfast on the Oasis, which is awesome BTW.

JC

I think some are being a little hard on the OP. While I used to take an eyeroll approach to these types of posts, I recently had a "worst cruise ever" experience myself. I think what we need to clarify is, this is the worst cruise WE OURSELVES have ever experienced. Is it better than being at work? Definitely. Did it live up to the precedence that RC has shown they are capable of? Not even close. My "worst cruise ever" was November 11 on Freedom. Service was not up to par, and it seemed to be a very unhappy crew. DR service was excellent, as always, but service in the Windjammer was nonexistent, and very few crew greeted us about the ship with a smile and a hello, as we are accustomed to. On two occasions, we actually heard crew cursing the captain. The language was so foul from the Flowrider crew on our last day, that I actually got up and left the area where I was reading. It was just a very unhappy crew. It was also the first time that we had an issue with the food. Now, food is subjective, and I've always read negative reviews with a grain of salt, because honestly, if you can't find something to eat, you've got a problem, right? Well, I am telling you, this was the saddest buffet I've ever seen on a ship. There literally was nothing we found that we liked. After the first few days, we would walk through the WJ, realize again that the pickings were slim, and we'd head to Sorrentos. I've never eaten so much pizza in my life. The buffet was just strange. For example, the salad bar lacked any kind of toppings. We never saw cheese, bacon or croutons the entire week. That is always our go-to at lunch, those great salads! On many days, the only dressings available bleu cheese, raspberry vinaigrette, and honey mustard. Strange offerings, and no ranch to be found. How do you not have ranch? One day I tried a chicken dish, and it honestly was inedible. I love the WJ, and I've never seen anything like this. MDR food was average at best. I'm so cruise obsessed, I can tell you what I'm having every night of the week, before I've even booked the cruise. I love the food! This was not the best. Several times entrees were served with sides that were not what was listed on the menu, and sometimes what was served differed from plate to plate. On the last night, my tablemate and I both ordered the seafood mash, and hers came with peas and mashed potatoes as advertised, but mine came only with some strange pumpkin and squash side I've never seen. I really wanted those peas and potatoes... (yes, of course all I had to do was ask, I know. Just making a point.) On one night, a tablemate ordered the angus beef sliders, and proclaimed them the best burger he'd had all week. (I have no idea what the soy burgers were in the WJ this time, but they were worse than the old school cafeteria burgers. Weird.) He ordered them the next night, and they were totally different. A hand formed patty the first night, and some strange sausage looking thing the next night, that looked like it had been sliced from a roll. It looked gross, and he said it tasted off, as well. We have never experienced this kind of inconsistency. We also had a terrible experience in Johnny Rockets. We LOVE JR, and look forward to having it twice or more a cruise. We were completely ignored for about 10 minutes while we waited to be acknowledged to be seated, then when we asked if someone could seat us, we were actually told "that's not my section." There are plenty of empty tables... We finally sat ourselves, then had to flag a waiter down, only to be told again, this isn't my section. What the heck? We are used to dancing and being made paper flowers in JR, what's going on? Once we got waited on, service was poor and the food not up to par. We were charged the $6.95 cover, and also charged for soft drinks, which I though was now included with the increased cover. We went back a second time, with marginally better service, and this time were not charged for soft drinks. ???

 

So, my point in this long response, is to agree with the OP, in that there can be a "worst" cruise. I'm not swearing off RC, by any means, but I will admit this was the first cruise that I was actually ready to get off the ship and go home. While we are not complainers, we did stop at guest services and ask for our gratuities to be removed on the last day, and explained that the service was lacking. We tipped our MDR staff and room steward well in cash. And as an aside, I waited in line over an hour to have that conversation at guest services, and was assured that when my bill came in the morning, the gratuities would be removed. Any guesses what happened? Here comes another 30 minutes at guest services, only to be told they couldn't do it right now, but would take care of it later. Hmmmm... Luckily, it was removed. I hope this cruise was just a fluke, but I must agree with the OP, that a worst cruise is a possibility. Best of luck, next time. :)

I was on the same cruise...second week of my b2b. I agree with you 100%. MY "worse cruise" ever. I, like you, hope this was a fluke. But, although I will cruise with RCI again, I definitely will not be cruising on the Freedom any time soon. If, after cruising a couple more times, this trend continues it may be a different story.

I am definitely not a complainer....

You are now [emoji849]

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Because your research is not thorough does mean not I have never been complimentary about RCI on here. I have posted many reviews of ships, CD's, restaurants, staff, events, etc. on here with praise. But I am not in the candy coating business so I'll point out subpar when deserved.

None of us want subpar experience and it should be highlighted so RC can make improvements when necessary.

We have always to date had excellent service which i have highlighted in the cruise surveys​ but i would not hesitate to report poor service just like Lmaxwell if it happened.

I was on the same cruise...second week of my b2b. I agree with you 100%. MY "worse cruise" ever. I, like you, hope this was a fluke. But, although I will cruise with RCI again, I definitely will not be cruising on the Freedom any time soon. If, after cruising a couple more times, this trend continues it may be a different story.

On our Freedom cruise in June i had a waiter asking us with great interest about the Harmony.

There is a recent post on FB that the current cruise on Indy is being hit heavily with Noro

There was a segment about it on the news this morning. The stock photo that they showed was the wrong ship though. It was a first generation Voyager class ship not Indy.

Worst. Cruise. Ever.

There was a segment about it on the news this morning. The stock photo that they showed was the wrong ship though. It was a first generation Voyager class ship not Indy.

That happens on some of the television advertising TAs in the UK.

One was talking about a deal on a Vision class ship with a picture of Voyager on the tv advertising ice rink??. on Vision of the seas.

No, it has not "always been". 27 years cruising this line and lately the quality of the product is subpar.

You haven't always had the ability to vote with your wallet? Someone previously held you at gunpoint to spend money on Royal for most of your 27 years of cruising? Your mother and father made you go on Royal long into adulthood until recently letting your wallet grow?????

The "as it has always been" you mistook for me commenting about Royal's lifetime of service standards WAS ACTUALLY referring to your ability to vote with your wallet which was in the same sentence.

You haven't always had the ability to vote with your wallet? Someone previously held you at gunpoint to spend money on Royal for most of your 27 years of cruising? Your mother and father made you go on Royal long into adulthood until recently letting your wallet grow?????

 

The "as it has always been" you mistook for me commenting about Royal's lifetime of service standards WAS ACTUALLY referring to your ability to vote with your wallet which was in the same sentence.

To date as D+ we have always had fantastic cruises on RCI.

We are high loyalty on P&O and Princess Elite but always prefer RC.