Harmony and Oasis First time Pinnacles.

Just got off the Oasis today. We did a semi B2B sailed on the Harmony 7/7/18 then on then Oasis 7/15/18.

These were are first cruises after making Pinnacle.

The first cruise on the Harmony was Excellent Plus, Plus. The Pinnacle pins really made a difference. The crew went above and beyond to please. One day we were eating a late lunch in the windjammer it was quite crowded, because on an early port leaving (1:30). We had gotten our plates and were looking for a table (like we always do) . One of the officers grabbed our plates a found us a table (had the staff clean it off immediately) Everywhere we went on the ship someone was asking, how is your cruise going? Even Captain Johnny came over to see how we were. We have done 80 cruises with Royal and never received the attention we did on this cruise.

I now understand why people wear the pins. I used to think it was to "impress" other cruisers. But I was wrong.

The loyalty ambassador called to make sure all the announcements were in our rooms. During the Meal with a Officer in Chops. They had a photographer take pictures and printed them before the end of the meal. There were only 3 Pinnacles on the cruise (a single lady, another couple and my wife and I, a total of 5 people) We were in the "Top 3" cruisers. So that got us a bottle of champagne and a photo. It was my wife's birthday and they presented her with a big Birthday cake during the top tier celebration (also took pics and delivered to room)

Disembarking was a breeze, being escorted off the ship.

All in all this was a truly memorable experience.

Next was the Oasis. It used to be our favorite ship. It was okay but lacked the WOW experience we had on the Harmony. The Diamond/Suite Concierges never introduced them selves to us ( like they did on Harmony). We really didn't mind, but there is more to come.

This sailing included Labadee. We had heard rumors about "Barefoot Beach" for years but were never able to go. There were no messages or notes (instructions) about the "Barefoot Beach" in our room. So we hopped off the ship at 10:30 and headed for the information booth. We were told to wait in a certain area to board a shuttle. We took the shuttle to the area. When we got off the shuttle there was a guard at the gate asking for arm bands. We told him we were not issued any, showed him are "white" seapass cards and he let us in. "no problems". At about 1:45 (after eating lunch there) my wife needed to use the restroom (which is outside the compound) upon trying to reenter the compound my wife was refused entry by the "island concierge" She did not have her seapass with her ( she had her bathing suit on). He told her in NO uncertain terms she could not get in. Even after a guest that entered the same time as us, said that we were allowed in earlier. After 5 minutes of arguing, he finally had my wife escorted in. (this will be brought to Michael Bayleys attention on the 9/29/18 cruise complete with pictures of his name badge). While I found out that the Suite/Pinnacle concierges were the ultimate blame because they never sent instructions or wristbands to us. The person at the gate could have handled it much better.

The Suite/Pinnacle concierges also dropped the ball about priority disembarking. We got the red and black luggage slips. But no instructions on where to meet. We assumed it was in the suite lounge like the Harmony the week before. But luckily we asked Beatrice (the diamond concierge) and she told us the meeting place and times (Beatrice was and always has been stellar). Again total lack of communication from the Suite/Pinnacle concierges.

All in all it is great being Pinnacle. Better than we though (a free cruise, and free internet).

Hopefully our experiences on the Oasis will get better (we have 8 trips on her before it goes to Europe)

Thank you for the post and especially for comparing your experiences on the Harmony and Oasis.

We love everything about the Harmony: officers, staff, crew, and especially the Suites Lounge and Coastal Kitchen.

Just got off the Oasis today. We did a semi B2B sailed on the Harmony 7/7/18 then on then Oasis 7/15/18.

These were are first cruises after making Pinnacle.

The first cruise on the Harmony was Excellent Plus, Plus. The Pinnacle pins really made a difference. The crew went above and beyond to please. One day we were eating a late lunch in the windjammer it was quite crowded, because on an early port leaving (1:30). We had gotten our plates and were looking for a table (like we always do) . One of the officers grabbed our plates a found us a table (had the staff clean it off immediately) Everywhere we went on the ship someone was asking, how is your cruise going? Even Captain Johnny came over to see how we were. We have done 80 cruises with Royal and never received the attention we did on this cruise.

I now understand why people wear the pins. I used to think it was to "impress" other cruisers. But I was wrong.

The loyalty ambassador called to make sure all the announcements were in our rooms. During the Meal with a Officer in Chops. They had a photographer take pictures and printed them before the end of the meal. There were only 3 Pinnacles on the cruise (a single lady, another couple and my wife and I, a total of 5 people) We were in the "Top 3" cruisers. So that got us a bottle of champagne and a photo. It was my wife's birthday and they presented her with a big Birthday cake during the top tier celebration (also took pics and delivered to room)

Disembarking was a breeze, being escorted off the ship.

All in all this was a truly memorable experience.

Next was the Oasis. It used to be our favorite ship. It was okay but lacked the WOW experience we had on the Harmony. The Diamond/Suite Concierges never introduced them selves to us ( like they did on Harmony). We really didn't mind, but there is more to come.

This sailing included Labadee. We had heard rumors about "Barefoot Beach" for years but were never able to go. There were no messages or notes (instructions) about the "Barefoot Beach" in our room. So we hopped off the ship at 10:30 and headed for the information booth. We were told to wait in a certain area to board a shuttle. We took the shuttle to the area. When we got off the shuttle there was a guard at the gate asking for arm bands. We told him we were not issued any, showed him are "white" seapass cards and he let us in. "no problems". At about 1:45 (after eating lunch there) my wife needed to use the restroom (which is outside the compound) upon trying to reenter the compound my wife was refused entry by the "island concierge" She did not have her seapass with her ( she had her bathing suit on). He told her in NO uncertain terms she could not get in. Even after a guest that entered the same time as us, said that we were allowed in earlier. After 5 minutes of arguing, he finally had my wife escorted in. (this will be brought to Michael Bayleys attention on the 9/29/18 cruise complete with pictures of his name badge). While I found out that the Suite/Pinnacle concierges were the ultimate blame because they never sent instructions or wristbands to us. The person at the gate could have handled it much better.

The Suite/Pinnacle concierges also dropped the ball about priority disembarking. We got the red and black luggage slips. But no instructions on where to meet. We assumed it was in the suite lounge like the Harmony the week before. But luckily we asked Beatrice (the diamond concierge) and she told us the meeting place and times (Beatrice was and always has been stellar). Again total lack of communication from the Suite/Pinnacle concierges.

All in all it is great being Pinnacle. Better than we though (a free cruise, and free internet).

Hopefully our experiences on the Oasis will get better (we have 8 trips on her before it goes to Europe)

Hi - we also just got off Oasis yesterday and are sorry to hear about your experience. We found the Barefoot Beach wrist bands on the dresser when we embarked, but could easily have missed them. Late on Sat evening I also found the letter stating the meeting place as the Champagne Bar for disembarkation. I do agree that we didn't feel "pampered" though, had to ask 4 times for our embarkation water and C&A wine, getting the 3rd bottle eventually on the last night. Were you at the Pinnacle Lunch ? It would have been nice to have had an official photo taken there and perhaps something other than the Tinsdale wine !!!! We are also on the Harmony 9/29 so look forward to seeing you then.

That's sad. I hope Oasis gets its act together. We were treated very well on Allure, similar to your Harmony experience.

Could the problem be that points were not added to your account in time to show up online with staff on Oasis which highlighted your new Pinnacle status level, since the Oasis cruise was so close to the Harmony cruise? Perhaps could (and probably) was not updated that quick?

Enjoyed reading your comments. We sail Oasis often but our first Oasis class cruise after we turn Pinnacle will be on Harmony. I really don't intend to wear a Pinnacle badge and while it is great that your received such great service wearing one, it seems that every passenger should get that same service. I seem to get great service ( well - most of the time) with no badge, C&A pins or even a room/suite sea pass card on a lanyard.

Thanks for all the info and when we have access to Barefoot Beach , I will be sure to take my sea pass with me to the ladies room! :)

M

Could the problem be that points were not added to your account in time to show up online with staff on Oasis which highlighted your new Pinnacle status level, since the Oasis cruise was so close to the Harmony cruise? Perhaps could (and probably) was not updated that quick?

I know sometimes they are a little slow rewarding points. But this time they were all up to date. We made Pinnacle on the April 29, 2018 sailing of the Rhapsody. The points were posted long before our Oasis cruise, We even had our pins (took about 6 weeks), plus we sailed on the Harmony first.

Nothing in the room or in the messages about Barefoot Beach or the Disembarking. We had talked to an extremely high Pinnacle member that knows the ropes inside and out. She never got anything in her room either

Enjoyed reading your comments. We sail Oasis often but our first Oasis class cruise after we turn Pinnacle will be on Harmony. I really don't intend to wear a Pinnacle badge and while it is great that your received such great service wearing one, it seems that every passenger should get that same service. I seem to get great service ( well - most of the time) with no badge, C&A pins or even a room/suite sea pass card on a lanyard.

 

Thanks for all the info and when we have access to Barefoot Beach , I will be sure to take my sea pass with me to the ladies room! :)

M

Harmony was spot on with everything

I would just make sure to check with the Suite/Pinnacle concierge. And get the waterproof wristbands. Then you wont need your seapass

Next cruise on the Oasis, we will make sure they know we are there.

At about 1:45 (after eating lunch there) my wife needed to use the restroom (which is outside the compound) upon trying to reenter the compound my wife was refused entry by the "island concierge" She did not have her seapass with her ( she had her bathing suit on). He told her in NO uncertain terms she could not get in. Even after a guest that entered the same time as us, said that we were allowed in earlier. After 5 minutes of arguing, he finally had my wife escorted in. (this will be brought to Michael Bayleys attention on the 9/29/18 cruise complete with pictures of his name badge). While I found out that the Suite/Pinnacle concierges were the ultimate blame because they never sent instructions or wristbands to us. The person at the gate could have handled it much better.

I kind of find the ball in your court on this one. I think if your wife would have been let in without the proper credentials, then you would have been arguing about the lack of credential checking. The man was only doing his job. He was just keeping out us lower end clientele. Lord knows if we were let in, all heck would be raised on these boards. All i'm saying is if a card was required to gain entrance before, why wouldn't it be needed for re-entry. No need to bug the CEO, I think he has bigger fish to fry than to deal with an employee following procedure.......just my thoughts

I kind of find the ball in your court on this one. I think if your wife would have been let in without the proper credentials, then you would have been arguing about the lack of credential checking. The man was only doing his job. He was just keeping out us lower end clientele. Lord knows if we were let in, all heck would be raised on these boards. All i'm saying is if a card was required to gain entrance before, why wouldn't it be needed for re-entry. No need to bug the CEO, I think he has bigger fish to fry than to deal with an employee following procedure.......just my thoughts

Not saying he wasn't doing his job. But it should have been handled differently If he was Doing his job he should have seen her walk out. And noticed that she didn't have a wristband when she left. She was only out for a couple of minutes, she didn't stroll around the island.

And he never should have told her "you ain't getting in there, you should go back to the ship and get a wristband".

The real problem was the Suite/Pinnacle concierges they totally dropped the ball.

Interesting....

Not saying he wasn't doing his job. But it should have been handled differently If he was Doing his job he should have seen her walk out. And noticed that she didn't have a wristband when she left. She was only out for a couple of minutes, she didn't stroll around the island.

And he never should have told her "you ain't getting in there, you should go back to the ship and get a wristband".

The real problem was the Suite/Pinnacle concierges they totally dropped the ball.

Maybe i came out of the gate a little harsh. I can probably understand where that guy is coming from.....probably a ton of people trying to get in there without any credentials.....so he probably was agitated and sounded a little brash....wouldn't you if you were in his shoes? He's probably not paying attention to leaving patrons because you can leave at your will and do not need to be accounted for when leaving. Then when you return you start the entry process again. But, on the opposite end, i can see your side also. Look i've never had a concierge, so i'm have no opinion on what they do or don't do. but what i can say is that standing at the entrance is probably tedious frustrating and aggravating, just cut the man some slack. No need to "tell on him" ....the issue was resolved and the end result was what you wanted

Not saying he wasn't doing his job. But it should have been handled differently If he was Doing his job he should have seen her walk out. And noticed that she didn't have a wristband when she left. She was only out for a couple of minutes, she didn't stroll around the island.

And he never should have told her "you ain't getting in there, you should go back to the ship and get a wristband".

The real problem was the Suite/Pinnacle concierges they totally dropped the ball.

Hello rt1092

Guess who this is. If you can not figure it out I will see you in 300 days on the Allure.

Hello rt1092

 

Guess who this is. If you can not figure it out I will see you in 300 days on the Allure.

Hi Steve See you soon.

Maybe i came out of the gate a little harsh. I can probably understand where that guy is coming from.....probably a ton of people trying to get in there without any credentials.....so he probably was agitated and sounded a little brash....wouldn't you if you were in his shoes? He's probably not paying attention to leaving patrons because you can leave at your will and do not need to be accounted for when leaving. Then when you return you start the entry process again. But, on the opposite end, i can see your side also. Look i've never had a concierge, so i'm have no opinion on what they do or don't do. but what i can say is that standing at the entrance is probably tedious frustrating and aggravating, just cut the man some slack. No need to "tell on him" ....the issue was resolved and the end result was what you wanted

Main problem was. We were new to the Pinnacle experience. On the Harmony they walked us through it nicely. Not at all on the Oasis. Now that I know what we need in Labadee (wrist bands) It won't happen again.

I understand they have a hard time policing the gate. I'm sure they have heard a million sob stories. But telling my wife to go back to the ship and get something she knew nothing about wasn't the best way of handling it. If she did what he told her it would have taken at least an hour by then I would have been quite concerned about what was taking so long.

My wife is a level headed person and this guy was quite a bit over the top.

She was standing there in a bathing suit. No seapass to return to the ship like he had instructed. The best way I can describe it was he enjoyed the power to tell people no. And I personally don't think he represents the Royal brand well. He should have immediately had one of his workers that were sitting there escort her in. That is what eventually happened.

Main problem was. We were new to the Pinnacle experience. On the Harmony they walked us through it nicely. Not at all on the Oasis. Now that I know what we need in Labadee (wrist bands) It won't happen again.

I understand they have a hard time policing the gate. I'm sure they have heard a million sob stories. But telling my wife to go back to the ship and get something she knew nothing about wasn't the best way of handling it. If she did what he told her it would have taken at least an hour by then I would have been quite concerned about what was taking so long.

My wife is a level headed person and this guy was quite a bit over the top.

She was standing there in a bathing suit. No seapass to return to the ship like he had instructed. The best way I can describe it was he enjoyed the power to tell people no. And I personally don't think he represents the Royal brand well. He should have immediately had one of his workers that were sitting there escort her in. That is what eventually happened.

I totally understand where your coming from. But if you felt so strongly about it, why wait to report it? Now instead of the guy getting corrected on his actions immediately, it will be 2+ months later, if anything happens at all. Guess i just have a sour taste in my mouth when people say they are going to go to the CEO about things that can be handled right there and then on the ship. Thats what guest services, loyality services, satisfaction form, managers etc. are for. .....Anyway, I hate to argue on this thread, but its just a hot button for me. Thanks for the info though on the comparison of the ships, the only oasis class ships I've been on have been oasis and allure.....cant wait to try harmony or symphony....

I know sometimes they are a little slow rewarding points. But this time they were all up to date. We made Pinnacle on the April 29, 2018 sailing of the Rhapsody. The points were posted long before our Oasis cruise, We even had our pins (took about 6 weeks), plus we sailed on the Harmony first.

Nothing in the room or in the messages about Barefoot Beach or the Disembarking. We had talked to an extremely high Pinnacle member that knows the ropes inside and out. She never got anything in her room either

Oh OK..that makes sense. I thought you meant you turned Pinnacle on the Harmony cruise just before the Oasis cruise.

Yeah...once again RCI: Really Inconsistently Inconsistent. :o

We have also had very, very good concierges...but have also had some pretty slack ones. :(

I'm just going to leave this here for OP.... https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2659142

Then there was the two couples (all Pinnacles, and believe me, you could not miss that, always had their precious Pinnacle badges on and their cruising life was literally ALL they could talk about. Guess there is nothing else about them that is the least bit interesting). They sat each evening in the Diamond Lounge complaining non-stop about all of the issues they were having, none of which were even remotely a big deal, but you would never know by the dramatic way they spoke. If you are that unhappy with Royal, then what are you doing here??? They were a perfect example of "familiarity breeds contempt". They threw around names of senior officers as if they were all best friends and how as Pinnacles they need to be treated better. I hope you are reading this Captain Black Sweatpants with your cheap Caribbean polyester shirts, your wife with her chunky, tacky jewelry, and you sir who along with your idiot wife could not shut up for five seconds about a simple mix up at Labadee you chose to treat as if the world were coming to an end. You are all just horrible and I am quite sure the crew as well as Beatrice the wonderful Diamond Concierge were laughing at you behind you backs.

:rolleyes:

I really don't intend to wear a Pinnacle badge and while it is great that your received such great service wearing one, it seems that every passenger should get that same service. I seem to get great service ( well - most of the time) with no badge, C&A pins or even a room/suite sea pass card on a lanyard.

 

Thanks for all the info and when we have access to Barefoot Beach , I will be sure to take my sea pass with me to the ladies room! :)

M

Absolutely agree! Well said and so true in our experience as well!

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Sorry, I have NO problem with the Barefoot Beach concierge enforcing the rules and appreciate him doing so. There are so many guests trying to get into this area all the time that they are constantly turning away. They do a great job limiting access to only those that are really suppose to be there. In doing so, This keeps it such a special and pleasant place for us all. Complaining about something this trivial to the CEO is another example why Pinnacles are increasingly gaining a bad rep of "I'm better than any other guest and deserve more whiners". We can be removed from the area with a stroke of a pen....IMHO and SMH.

Sorry, I have NO problem with the Barefoot Beach concierge enforcing the rules and appreciate him doing so. There are so many guests trying to get into this area all the time that they are constantly turning away. They do a great job limiting access to only those that are really suppose to be there. In doing so, This keeps it such a special and pleasant place for us all. Complaining about something this trivial to the CEO is another example why Pinnacles are increasingly gaining a bad rep of "I'm better than any other guest and deserve more whiners". We can be removed from the area with a stroke of a pen....IMHO and SMH.

Well said and we are thankful for this gentlemen enforcing the rules. If only all rules were enforced with such consistency onboard. I will be making sure I have wrist bands or Seapass card at all times from now on.

Sorry, I have NO problem with the Barefoot Beach concierge enforcing the rules and appreciate him doing so. There are so many guests trying to get into this area all the time that they are constantly turning away. They do a great job limiting access to only those that are really suppose to be there. In doing so, This keeps it such a special and pleasant place for us all. Complaining about something this trivial to the CEO is another example why Pinnacles are increasingly gaining a bad rep of "I'm better than any other guest and deserve more whiners". We can be removed from the area with a stroke of a pen....IMHO and SMH.

You bring up a good point here. As pinnacles, we need to be careful of rushing to Michael Bayley for everything. This only diminishes us further and further. I can tell you right now it is a constant struggle onboard ships to keep pinnacles happy. I for one am sorry for your experience, but also am happy the rules are being enforced that preserve the exclusivity of the beach.

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You bring up a good point here. As pinnacles, we need to be careful of rushing to Michael Bayley for everything. This only diminishes us further and further. I can tell you right now it is a constant struggle onboard ships to keep pinnacles happy. I for one am sorry for your experience, but also am happy the rules are being enforced that preserve the exclusivity of the beach.

 

 

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I totally agree!

At about 1:45 (after eating lunch there) my wife needed to use the restroom (which is outside the compound) upon trying to reenter the compound my wife was refused entry by the "island concierge" She did not have her seapass with her ( she had her bathing suit on). He told her in NO uncertain terms she could not get in. Even after a guest that entered the same time as us, said that we were allowed in earlier.

It is unfortunate that this happened; you should have been provided with the wristbands. Nevertheless, the guard was just doing his job and it is really not a good idea to ever be without a seapass on the island, regardless of whether you are a Pinnacle or not. Did she have any identification with her at all or did she leave everything with you? In the latter case, there would have been very big problems if you got separated and she had to return to the ship without you. If a person does not carry a purse or wallet at all times, then that person should probably have his or her seapass on a lanyard.

Enjoyed reading your comments. We sail Oasis often but our first Oasis class cruise after we turn Pinnacle will be on Harmony. I really don't intend to wear a Pinnacle badge and while it is great that your received such great service wearing one, it seems that every passenger should get that same service. I seem to get great service ( well - most of the time) with no badge, C&A pins or even a room/suite sea pass card on a lanyard.

 

Thanks for all the info and when we have access to Barefoot Beach , I will be sure to take my sea pass with me to the ladies room! :)

M

I TOTALLY agree that everyone should be treated the same! I think how a person interacts with others is how you are responded to. As a long time Pinnacle member, I only wear my pin on special occasions hosted by C&A since that is who gave us the pin. The Seapass has Pinnacle Member listed and that is all that is needed.