Towel Rant

[mgg42]

Just off the Liberty of The Seas this past weekend, and finally get to weigh in on the pool towel system.

 

I could care less if they want to charge $25 for an unreturned towel. Makes sense to me. Heck charge $50 for all I care!

 

But what I can't stand, is WAITING IN LINE to obtain, exchange or return a towel. Seriously, on the last sea day, there were about forty people standing in line to return the towels. Not gonna happen. I left my two in my stateroom. No charge showed up on my statement (even thought they had the nerve to leave a reminder message on my phone while I was at dinner to return the towels by 11pm).

 

Seriously, just stick four of them in the closets in the stateroom and charge for any that aren't there on debarkation.

 

But waiting in line for towels? Absurd!

[masonpips]

I TOTALLY AGREE!!

 

We just returned from Celebrity and the towels were out for the taking. How refreshing and civilized. I felt like a human being again.

 

DOWN w/the current towel "system". And grouchy attendants too. I know it's a thankless job, so ditch it.

[awboater]

I've never had an issue with long lines at towel turn-in. But we usually turn them in before 5PM on the last day.

 

If we decide to go for a dip later, we can always get more towels.

[39august]

I refuse to stand in line for towels. I get mine from the gym locker room.

[cruiserone]

I have not been on RCCL in about 5 years. I cannot believe that they are doing this. Are there that many towels being stolen every week? Why would someone want to take those towels home? to wash the dog or cat?

 

I agree with posters that are saying leave them in your room like we always did. Standing on line for a towel? Next thing you know people will be bringing their own towels to avoid this (maybe that is the point).

 

Happy Sailing All and stay dry:D

[10-96]

I pack my own beach towel. Why?

 

1. My towels are bigger and nicer

2. I don't have to stand in any lines

3. My lounge chair is always easy to find because my towel is more colorful and it stands out.

4. I don't have to worry about being charged if I misplace it. (I won't misplace it because of reason #3.)

 

PS. Yes, there is plenty of room in my suitcase to pack it.:)

 

By the way, Happy Cruise Critic birthday to me....this is my very first post. :)

[12marshall]

Yes.... it's unfortunately very inconvenient.

However, Here is the deal... The towels on RCI are nice and I bet enough were stolen that it became an issue. The other solution is cheap towels that RCI doesn't care about and I would rather deal with the line and get nice towels.

:D

p.s. As a suite guest you don't have to worry about the return... just put them in a bin!

[Merion_Mom]

I refuse to stand in line for towels. I get mine from the gym locker room.

 

sssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[dawnmariex]

I pack my own beach towel. Why?

 

1. My towels are bigger and nicer

2. I don't have to stand in any lines

3. My lounge chair is always easy to find because my towel is more colorful and it stands out.

4. I don't have to worry about being charged if I misplace it. (I won't misplace it because of reason #3.)

 

PS. Yes, there is plenty of room in my suitcase to pack it.:)

 

By the way, Happy Cruise Critic birthday to me....this is my very first post. :)

 

Welcome!

[10-96]

Welcome!

 

 

Thank you dawnmariex. :)

[Langley Cruisers]

...I bet enough were stolen that it became an issue. The other solution is cheap towels that RCI doesn't care about and I would rather deal with the line and get nice towels.

 

Yes, that must be what happened so they are dealing with it as best they can. Some people settle their account in cash and if towels were to be charged, they'd have to bill the customer and that takes time and resources.

 

To me, this is a non-issue. I'm content in dealing with it this way, seeing as I have no other choice (I am not bringing my own huge beach towel and flying with it packed in my suitcase). Sorry some of you feel it's inconvenient or that you had to rant about it. Turning the towel in the day before has never been an issue for us in dealing with any lineups. Oh well.

[Ashland]

I pack my own beach towel. Why?

 

1. My towels are bigger and nicer

2. I don't have to stand in any lines

3. My lounge chair is always easy to find because my towel is more colorful and it stands out.

4. I don't have to worry about being charged if I misplace it. (I won't misplace it because of reason #3.)

 

PS. Yes, there is plenty of room in my suitcase to pack it.:)

 

By the way, Happy Cruise Critic birthday to me....this is my very first post. :)

I guess having a clean fresh towel is something some can overlook ;)

[ChevyCruiser]

I applaud RCI for the towel checkout system, and sincerely HOPE they charge people for unretrurned towels.

 

I have seen the worth of the system by almost eliminating chair hogs around the pools.

 

KUDOS to RCI!!!!!

[wineandbeach]

The Towel situation on Royal has been a pet peeve of mine since my first Royal Cruise. It actually drives me nuts to wait in line for a towel. One cruise we were on, they never had clean towels! With that said Royal has a lot of other things I love so we will be cruising on the Serenade this summer. I would prefer Celebrity - (big comfy towels everywhere along with cushions on the lounge chairs, allowed to take wine on board, and many other extras) but they don't have a ship in the Caribbean in the summer so I will have a great time on my Royal cruise.

[critterchick]

I applaud RCI for the towel checkout system, and sincerely HOPE they charge people for unretrurned towels.

 

I have seen the worth of the system by almost eliminating chair hogs around the pools.

 

KUDOS to RCI!!!!!

 

I haven't noticed a decline in chair hogs - they just put their towels on the chairs and take their chances, near as I can tell.

 

It used to be that your cabin steward would put two towels in your cabin and you would be charged for them if they weren't there after you left the ship. But the system must not have worked - the cabin stewards have enough to do on turnaround day without doing an inventory and they'd be billing people after already giving them their "final" bills, so I'm sure it was a nightmare of accounting. But the old towels were also just plain beige, so no real souvenir value. The new ones have logos on them. They're small and linty, not very nice IMO, so I honestly can't fathom somebody stealing them, but it happens.

 

After a pre-inaugural cruise on Liberty, one of my CC shipmates reported overhearing a travel agent bragging to her friend about stealing 4 logo towels off the ship. They were having people sign their cabin numbers, so she just put down fake numbers and collected what she wanted.:mad:

 

So the rest of us get to pay for it...

[2timecruiser28]

I just got off the Voyager and I was surprised the beach/deck towels had shrunk. They are more the size of a small bath towel, not a beach towel. I'm only 5'6" and the towel doesn't have enough length for me to lay on...and they were think and cheap too. I miss having fresh ones delivered to my room. Having to check out and return my own towels is just one more way services have been cut in the last few years. Ugh.

[Babyberger]

Yes.... it's unfortunately very inconvenient.

However, Here is the deal... The towels on RCI are nice and I bet enough were stolen that it became an issue. The other solution is cheap towels that RCI doesn't care about and I would rather deal with the line and get nice towels.

:D

p.s. As a suite guest you don't have to worry about the return... just put them in a bin!

 

I am curious as to the suite guest....is this accurate? The lines last year on Oasis were absurd and we will have a suite on Allure, so this would be nice if it's true.

[land lover]

I do remember reading here on the board that someone was charged in error for a towel so it does happen......

 

I guess cruisers don't remember or were not cruising on RCI when used towels would just be left on loungers...this new procedure gives people incentive to pick up after themselves,

Guess I have been lucky towel attendant have been fast, so I never have had much of a wait.

[klingoncruiser]

I bet there are plenty of towels that walked off each week on the ship. It is amazing what people will steal just to have a "reminder" of the trip. On one trip.... some one took all the brass placards off the walls about flushing in the mens room. Go figure..... :rolleyes:

[Merion_Mom]

I haven't noticed a decline in chair hogs - they just put their towels on the chairs and take their chances, near as I can tell.

 

It used to be that your cabin steward would put two towels in your cabin and you would be charged for them if they weren't there after you left the ship. But the system must not have worked - the cabin stewards have enough to do on turnaround day without doing an inventory and they'd be billing people after already giving them their "final" bills, so I'm sure it was a nightmare of accounting. But the old towels were also just plain beige, so no real souvenir value. The new ones have logos on them. They're small and linty, not very nice IMO, so I honestly can't fathom somebody stealing them, but it happens.

 

After a pre-inaugural cruise on Liberty, one of my CC shipmates reported overhearing a travel agent bragging to her friend about stealing 4 logo towels off the ship. They were having people sign their cabin numbers, so she just put down fake numbers and collected what she wanted.:mad:

 

So the rest of us get to pay for it...

 

Jean, it's a small detail, but it makes the story even worse.

 

She was overheard bragging that she had stolen SEVEN towels!!!!! :eek: :eek:

[wrp96]

At least with scanning the card, you don't have to worry about people giving a false cabin number.:rolleyes:

 

On some cruises, when we have a port day the first day of the cruise, I'll just buy a cheap beach towel in port for use during the cruise. If I have room for it at the end of the cruise, great I have another towel to use at home. Otherwise I leave it behind.

[MAHA]

On our last day on Adventure in Janaury, they said the pool towel station would be open until 11 for returns. Our sons left dinner early to return theirs by 10 or so. When they got there, it was closed. Thye got up early the next morning to return the towels and checked them in. They were told the charges would be removed from their seapass accounts. They were never removed. I also don't like the new logo towels as they are smaller than the old beige/yellow ones. Please make them larger again! Also, the dark blue fades in the wash. Maybe make beige/yellow ones with the RCCL logo on them in darker blue.

[Bigtex1622]

Jean, it's a small detail, but it makes the story even worse.

 

She was overheard bragging that she had stolen SEVEN towels!!!!! :eek: :eek:

 

 

 

might have been two different people.

 

Shame on You !!! ( for being caught )

 

 

:rolleyes:

[TerriDHair]

Just off the Liberty of The Seas this past weekend, and finally get to weigh in on the pool towel system.

 

I could care less if they want to charge $25 for an unreturned towel. Makes sense to me. Heck charge $50 for all I care!

 

But what I can't stand, is WAITING IN LINE to obtain, exchange or return a towel. Seriously, on the last sea day, there were about forty people standing in line to return the towels. Not gonna happen. I left my two in my stateroom. No charge showed up on my statement (even thought they had the nerve to leave a reminder message on my phone while I was at dinner to return the towels by 11pm).

 

Seriously, just stick four of them in the closets in the stateroom and charge for any that aren't there on debarkation.

 

But waiting in line for towels? Absurd!

 

I agree. The waiting in line has been getting on our nerves. As well as having to go up to the Lido deck to get towels on our way out for an excursion (yes, I know, we should know by now to get fresh towels the day before, but still!). The whole process is just inconvenient. A minor one in the grand scheme of things, but it sure was nice when the towels were delivered to the cabin. I had almost forgotten how nice it was until we got our first (and probably last) upgrade to a suite last month. I didn't even know that towels in the cabin was one of the suite perks, but I liked it! :D

[FLHugh]

OK, here is how you do it!... On day 1, you check out two towels, you then circle the pool a couple of times to scope out which towels covering lounges are really just chair hogs holding the lounges. Then you pick up two towels and take them back to the return counter and let them scan you card. Walla!! your account is now clear. The remainder of the week, you just walk up to the towel return counter and exchange the two used towels for two fresh ones. Or, if you want four towels, you can do the same thing in the afternoon. Now you have four. On the last day, you put the towels in your dirty laundry luggage and take them home to use to wash the dog!!!! :D:D:D