What is the expected standard of service ?

[Lottycruiser]

Having just returned from our first cruise ( Navigator of the Seas ) i was quite happy with the service we got but wasnt wowed , i'm curious as i didnt know what to expect but having heard of the '' turndown service '' at night , i was expecting to return to the stateroom to see the sheets turned down or something , but this never happened ,the beds were always made and we did get three towel animals throughout the week , but i am sure that the bedding was never changed which surprised me a little .we were on my time dining so had already paid gratuaties but we did leave an extra $20 in the envelope which we gave to our stateroom attendent , we didnt ask anything of him and never had any room service or anything , we tidied our room up before leaving it every morning yet felt we had undertipped him , he didnt act that grateful of the tip .Where we being mean or did we expect too much ? having never cruised before we really didnt know what service we should have received .

[cb at sea]

If you left $20 above the tips you'd already paid, and he seemed ungrateful....then you had a bad attendant!

We had some great attendants, some not-so-hot, and one, while he/she kept the room immaculate, we never, ever saw him/her!

In your cabin is a card to put on the bed when you want fresh sheets...perhaps he hid it so he wouldn't have to bother....

This is not the sort of "service" that we've come to expect. I would NOT have left an additional tip!

I think you just got a "dud"!

[Lottycruiser]

If you left $20 above the tips you'd already paid, and he seemed ungrateful....then you had a bad attendant!

We had some great attendants, some not-so-hot, and one, while he/she kept the room immaculate, we never, ever saw him/her!

In your cabin is a card to put on the bed when you want fresh sheets...perhaps he hid it so he wouldn't have to bother....

This is not the sort of "service" that we've come to expect. I would NOT have left an additional tip!

I think you just got a "dud"!

 

We never saw a card requesting clean bedding , the only cards were a make up my room and do not disturb card which he told us about , you slotted them into the key card entry on the door , i would have expected at least one change of bedding during the week , but i know this didnt happen as one of my pillowcases had a small old stain on it and it never got changed , guess i got a dud attendant , he was pleasant enough when we saw him in the hallway , guess he realised he had a couple of newbies and knew he could flip us off .

[Quigley10]

We gave our stateroom attendant, Clark, a bag of chocolates and thank-you note upon embarkation on the Freedom. After that, we rarely saw him, but had regular morning and evening services. Towel animals every night, and fresh sheets as well. (I only know this because the sheets the first night smelled a little musty - we never had them again.) We routinely saw Clark in other rooms, and he always greeted us with a big hello and smile.

 

It helped that on the first day, Clark asked us about our dining time and to use the "Make up room" card whenever we left in the morning. Still, we can't help but wonder if he spied on us...he always seemed to know the exact moment we left the room! :D All in all, excellent, excellent service.

[frogsgirl]

Hi Lottycruiser

 

We first cruised in 2007 with Princess & your post struck a cord with me. I just wasn't "wowed" also. Don't get me wrong we enjoyed the cruise but I was always waiting/hoping for somthing that bit more.:confused:

Anyway 50 days to our next one and not being a "cruise virgin" anymore I'm hoping RCCL will be wowing me for 2 weeks....I'll let you know;)

[PhoenixDawgCruising]

Funny, of all my cruises, my 2 best cabin attendants both happened to be on Navigator. Cherry, back in 2003, and Sandy (male, nickname, he's the 7th floor aft man!) in March of this year. You just never know....:D

[madforcruising]

We never saw a card requesting clean bedding , the only cards were a make up my room and do not disturb card which he told us about , you slotted them into the key card entry on the door , i would have expected at least one change of bedding during the week , but i know this didnt happen as one of my pillowcases had a small old stain on it and it never got changed , guess i got a dud attendant , he was pleasant enough when we saw him in the hallway , guess he realised he had a couple of newbies and knew he could flip us off .

 

I´ve never seen such a card on any ship regardless of cruiseline or cabin category.

 

You asked what the expected standard of service is - I´d say about what you described you got. That´s my expectation of cabin service. Getting the cabin freshened up twice a day, my beds being made, towels exchanged.

 

Not sure what you expected to be wowed about.

[Lottycruiser]

Hi Lottycruiser

 

We first cruised in 2007 with Princess & your post struck a cord with me. I just wasn't "wowed" also. Don't get me wrong we enjoyed the cruise but I was always waiting/hoping for somthing that bit more.:confused:

Anyway 50 days to our next one and not being a "cruise virgin" anymore I'm hoping RCCL will be wowing me for 2 weeks....I'll let you know;)

 

I hope you get a good cabin attendant , dont get me wrong , ours was friendly and always greeted us when he saw us on our way to the cabin , the cabin was always clean , although we kept it very tidy so that made his job easier , just didnt get that wow factor and thought he should have changed the bedding at least once that week .Have a fab cruise with RCI , you will love it , we had a ball .

[frogsgirl]

I hope you get a good cabin attendant , dont get me wrong , ours was friendly and always greeted us when he saw us on our way to the cabin , the cabin was always clean , although we kept it very tidy so that made his job easier , just didnt get that wow factor and thought he should have changed the bedding at least once that week .Have a fab cruise with RCI , you will love it , we had a ball .

 

Thanks Lottycruiser..I will be writing my review on my return..and I will definately being asking for bedding change, with or without the request card!:)

[madforcruising]

I hope you get a good cabin attendant , dont get me wrong , ours was friendly and always greeted us when he saw us on our way to the cabin , the cabin was always clean , although we kept it very tidy so that made his job easier , just didnt get that wow factor and thought he should have changed the bedding at least once that week .Have a fab cruise with RCI , you will love it , we had a ball .

 

Having the sheets changed at least once during a week is not unreasonable and what usually happens. Although I have to say I don´t change my sheets at home every 3 or 4 days.

 

However out of curiousity, you are talking about being wowed. May I ask, what did you expect? What would have wowed you?

[Lottycruiser]

I´ve never seen such a card on any ship regardless of cruiseline or cabin category.

 

You asked what the expected standard of service is - I´d say about what you described you got. That´s my expectation of cabin service. Getting the cabin freshened up twice a day, my beds being made, towels exchanged.

 

Not sure what you expected to be wowed about.

 

I was quite happy with the service , i just wondered what this '' turndown service '' was that people have been posting about , and to be honest i did expect a change of bedding midway through the week , we went to a 4 star hotel a few months ago in Portugal for just 4 nights and got bedding changed every night ,i know you cant compare hotel to ship but just wanted to know what other cruisers service had been like , We cruise again in september on Freedom of the Seas so i will then have a comparison to go by .

[madforcruising]

I was quite happy with the service , i just wondered what this '' turndown service '' was that people have been posting about , and to be honest i did expect a change of bedding midway through the week , we went to a 4 star hotel a few months ago in Portugal for just 4 nights and got bedding changed every night ,i know you cant compare hotel to ship but just wanted to know what other cruisers service had been like , We cruise again in september on Freedom of the Seas so i will then have a comparison to go by .

 

The times that the sheets were changed that frequently are long gone. Today about once on a week long cruise seems the norm, unless they are stained. I never pay too much attention at if the sheets are changed or not.

 

The turn down service actually is nothing else, than making the bed, cleaning the bathroom and exchange the towels and place the next days compass in your room. Occasionally you might get a towel animal.

[Lottycruiser]

Having the sheets changed at least once during a week is not unreasonable and what usually happens. Although I have to say I don´t change my sheets at home every 3 or 4 days.

 

However out of curiousity, you are talking about being wowed. May I ask, what did you expect? What would have wowed you?

 

Having read many reviews and posts on here i was obviously expecting too much ,hearing how amazing the cabin stewards are and how they couldnt be more helpful etc maybe i was expecting him to do the riverdance down the hallway ;) , the fact i left him an extra $20 probably emphasises that i was happy enough with what i got and believe me i would highly recommend RCI to anyone , reading some of the replies it does sound like i didnt get the usualy high standard of service , i wasnt complaining i was just enquireing as to what other peoples expectations are .

[madforcruising]

Having read many reviews and posts on here i was obviously expecting too much ,hearing how amazing the cabin stewards are and how they couldnt be more helpful etc maybe i was expecting him to do the riverdance down the hallway ;) , the fact i left him an extra $20 probably emphasises that i was happy enough with what i got and believe me i would highly recommend RCI to anyone , reading some of the replies it does sound like i didnt get the usualy high standard of service , i wasnt complaining i was just enquireing as to what other peoples expectations are .

 

 

I really didn´t think you were complaining or not enjoying you cruise. A lot of our experiences are drawn by our expectations. I asked what your expectations were as from your post I got the impression your expectations might just have been too high. I am like you and always leave my room tidy. As I usually don´t have any requests the cabin attendants make up my room, make my bed, exchange towels and leave the compass. They surely might fullfill extra requests, but you have to ask for them. What you described (sans the not changed linens) sounds to me about the standard service that´s given.

Again, I do understand you didn´t complain.:)

[beverland]

Turn down service happens in the evening when the room steward cleans the room for the night.

 

I have been on many cruises and I can honestly say there has only been 2 or 3 times when we did not receive this service. This happened on the first evening of the cruise (turn-around day) and the steward asked us before we went to dinner if we needed anything. As it had been a long day for them with debarkation and embarkation, we were ok with this.

 

The comforter is typically taken off the bed and the sheets are pulled back and folded at the top in an inverted "V" so each person can just slip into bed and pull up the sheets. We used to get chocolates on the pillows, but Royal has done away with that practice.

 

Sometimes there are towel animals in the room and sometimes there is not.

 

The bathroom is cleaned and towels are replaced. The lights are dimmed and the curtains are drawn. And, there is fresh ice in the bukket.

 

You also receive your Cruise Compass with information about the port of call or sea day for the following day.

 

So, Lottycruiser, that is the description of turndown service as I have experienced on my cruises.

 

Unless your bed was full of clothes, magazines or whatever, I can't imagine why the turndown service was not done. Rather surprising, as a matter of fact. Perhaps you did get a "dud" as another poster suggested.

 

Here's to excellent "Turn Down Service" on a future cruise.

[jcl410]

"Turn down" service is part of the night time service by the cabin attendant. In the morning they do the major cleaning, and make up the bed. (i.e. put on the bedspread, and all the fluffy pillows that make it too hard to sleep on.)

 

At night, they will set up your bedding for sleeping; that's the turn down service itself. Typically, they will also refresh the ice bucket, replace used towels, etc. They also leave the Cruise compass for the next day; usually on your bed

 

Aloha,

 

John

[PhoenixDawgCruising]

I'm one of those people that cleans the cabin before the attendant comes in in the morning to clean the cabin. I straighten up, put stuff away, all I expect them to do is upkeep, take away dirty towels/glasses and replace them, refill the mini bar, and do light tidying up. I don't expect them to pick up after me, I do that myself.:)

 

When I judge a great or not so great attendant, my grading has more to do with them having a friendly, helpful personality, and how they handle it when I do ask them to go above and beyond (like asking Sandy to find us a monitor for the video games, which he did!). He was also tipped well for his efforts.;)

 

Fpr me personally, I also like an attendant who is nice to my kids, which most are, since they usually are missing their own kids back home.

 

The only "bad" attendants I have had were on Carnival, but it had to do with their demeanor, not their cleaning abilities. For some reason, to me the Carnival cabin attendants really seem like they don't want to be there at all, and they seem very cold and indifferent, which is fine, but they certainly weren't tipped extra for being friendly.:D

[bplazo]

We have always received turn down service every evening.

[stretch44]

Having just returned from our first cruise ( Navigator of the Seas ) i was quite happy with the service we got but wasnt wowed , i'm curious as i didnt know what to expect but having heard of the '' turndown service '' at night , i was expecting to return to the stateroom to see the sheets turned down or something , but this never happened ,the beds were always made and we did get three towel animals throughout the week , but i am sure that the bedding was never changed which surprised me a little .we were on my time dining so had already paid gratuaties but we did leave an extra $20 in the envelope which we gave to our stateroom attendent , we didnt ask anything of him and never had any room service or anything , we tidied our room up before leaving it every morning yet felt we had undertipped him , he didnt act that grateful of the tip .Where we being mean or did we expect too much ? having never cruised before we really didnt know what service we should have received .

 

Like everything else, sometimes you get good ones, sometimes not so good. We've had cabin attendents that did pratically nothing to ones who have gone as far as taking time out of their free time to show my son how to make the towel animals he was leaving each night. You certaintly did not undertip him as the prepaid amounts is based on adequate service, which is all you received. He should have been grateful to receive the extra $20.

[Lottycruiser]

Turn down service happens in the evening when the room steward cleans the room for the night.

 

I have been on many cruises and I can honestly say there has only been 2 or 3 times when we did not receive this service. This happened on the first evening of the cruise (turn-around day) and the steward asked us before we went to dinner if we needed anything. As it had been a long day for them with debarkation and embarkation, we were ok with this.

 

The comforter is typically taken off the bed and the sheets are pulled back and folded at the top in an inverted "V" so each person can just slip into bed and pull up the sheets. We used to get chocolates on the pillows, but Royal has done away with that practice.

 

Sometimes there are towel animals in the room and sometimes there is not.

 

The bathroom is cleaned and towels are replaced. The lights are dimmed and the curtains are drawn. And, there is fresh ice in the bukket.

 

You also receive your Cruise Compass with information about the port of call or sea day for the following day.

 

So, Lottycruiser, that is the description of turndown service as I have experienced on my cruises.

 

Unless your bed was full of clothes, magazines or whatever, I can't imagine why the turndown service was not done. Rather surprising, as a matter of fact. Perhaps you did get a "dud" as another poster suggested.

 

Here's to excellent "Turn Down Service" on a future cruise.

 

Thank you , that was a detailed explanation of what to expect when you return to your cabin in the evening , we certainly didnt get that treatment , we didnt always have clean towels but that was because there was a polite notice in the bathroom saying that RCI was trying to help the envirement so would be grateful if you only request towels when needed , so after a couple of days we would throw the towels in the shower cubicle and they would then be changed , we had twin beds so obviously there was no comforter on the beds to remove and return ,i had a cocktail which i took back to the cabin and the empty glass stayed there till the next evening ,no lights dimmed or curtains drawn , oh my i am expecting to be really spoilt on my cruise in september :)

[PhoenixDawgCruising]

The system is simple, if you want clean towels, leave the dirty ones on the floor in the bathroom. If you hang the dirty towels back up, they will not be changed, it's the green approach to saving water. The same goes for most hotels these days, at least everywhere I have been.

[teajak]

Turn down service happens in the evening when the room steward cleans the room for the night.

 

I have been on many cruises and I can honestly say there has only been 2 or 3 times when we did not receive this service. This happened on the first evening of the cruise (turn-around day) and the steward asked us before we went to dinner if we needed anything. As it had been a long day for them with debarkation and embarkation, we were ok with this.

 

The comforter is typically taken off the bed and the sheets are pulled back and folded at the top in an inverted "V" so each person can just slip into bed and pull up the sheets. We used to get chocolates on the pillows, but Royal has done away with that practice.

 

Sometimes there are towel animals in the room and sometimes there is not.

 

The bathroom is cleaned and towels are replaced. The lights are dimmed and the curtains are drawn. And, there is fresh ice in the bukket.

 

You also receive your Cruise Compass with information about the port of call or sea day for the following day.

 

So, Lottycruiser, that is the description of turndown service as I have experienced on my cruises.

 

Unless your bed was full of clothes, magazines or whatever, I can't imagine why the turndown service was not done. Rather surprising, as a matter of fact. Perhaps you did get a "dud" as another poster suggested.

 

Here's to excellent "Turn Down Service" on a future cruise.

I totally agree with your post. We have alwas had the service that your describe above. I would be happy without the towel animals as I think it is a waste of the stewards time and adds extra laundry for no reason. I usually tell them not to bother.

[teajak]

Turn down service happens in the evening when the room steward cleans the room for the night.

 

I have been on many cruises and I can honestly say there has only been 2 or 3 times when we did not receive this service. This happened on the first evening of the cruise (turn-around day) and the steward asked us before we went to dinner if we needed anything. As it had been a long day for them with debarkation and embarkation, we were ok with this.

 

The comforter is typically taken off the bed and the sheets are pulled back and folded at the top in an inverted "V" so each person can just slip into bed and pull up the sheets. We used to get chocolates on the pillows, but Royal has done away with that practice.

 

Sometimes there are towel animals in the room and sometimes there is not.

 

The bathroom is cleaned and towels are replaced. The lights are dimmed and the curtains are drawn. And, there is fresh ice in the bukket.

 

You also receive your Cruise Compass with information about the port of call or sea day for the following day.

 

So, Lottycruiser, that is the description of turndown service as I have experienced on my cruises.

 

Unless your bed was full of clothes, magazines or whatever, I can't imagine why the turndown service was not done. Rather surprising, as a matter of fact. Perhaps you did get a "dud" as another poster suggested.

 

Here's to excellent "Turn Down Service" on a future cruise.

I totally agree with your post. We have always had the service that your describe above. I would be happy without the towel animals as I think it is a waste of the stewards time and adds extra laundry for no reason. I usually tell them not to bother.

[teajak]

Sorry,tried to delete one post but couldn't.