What narks you when reading reviews? Just for fun ;)

[PEMCO007]

Just wondered what bugs you about reading reviews, I love to have a nose at the reviews and take them all with a pinch of salt. I know everyone has a right to an opinion, and there are some geniune gripes but these are some of mine:

 

Going on a holiday cruise or in term time and complaining about the amount of kids!

 

Moaning about noise of cabin when they are directly above/below gym or nightclub, do people not do there research?

 

Moaning about 15% surcharge on drinks and tips (btw I am british ;)), pretty standard procedure to me, do they not research?

 

All these things in my opinion are all things that can be prevented with the right amount of research and seem pretty obvious to me. We love to cruise and have had some great and some that could do better but my philosophy is any cruise is better than none ;), what are yours?:D

[John Bull]

I've seen glowing reports about this ship, but here's an honest opinion.......:rolleyes:

 

First-timers' reviews aren't worth reading, because they have nothing to compare it against.....:rolleyes:

 

Don't ever sail with ABC Cruises. Everything about our cruise was wrong ...... :rolleyes:

 

the ship has a few faults, but millions of reviewers exaggerate the problems .......... :rolleyes:

 

JB :)

[Krazy Kruizers]

I don't bother going to the review section of this site.

The reviews that I read elsewhere here -- most I take with a grain of salt -- especially when it is a first time post for someone.

[paul929207]

The ones that hate everything. Like everyone, I have my favorites and my not so favorites. But even the ones I don't like must be doing something right. There are thousands of people on them every day. If they were as horrible as some people claim they would be empty

[sparky-elpaso]

People who gripe about the "personality types" they come in contact with. They seem to want everyone on board to think, behave, etc. just the way they want. Not including the rude types who harass the crew, etc. in this - I'd want to push that type overboard.

 

"Foodies" who expect 5-star restaurant cooking. Not gonna happen - they're cooking for thousands. I've always found the food to be very good on our cruises so far. We certainly have never gone hungry.

 

The folks who don't do their research on shore excursions. Most cruise lines have pretty good descriptions on how active the excursion will be, etc.

 

The worst ones I think are the ones who are upset about the weather they encounter along the way - and think they should get some kind of refund because it wasn't 80 degrees and sunny the whole time. "Too hot" - "too cold" - "too windy" - "it rained". As though the Captain had some magic little button he could push to change things.

[cruzeluver]

The ones with no specifics are terrible, and frankly, I don't think should be published as they have no value. Some examples:

 

"The food was terrible." Well this is a useless statement. Why was it terrible? Not served at the proper temperature? Too Spicy for you? Not spicy enough? Boring menu? Too durn fancy for you cuz your idea of fine dining is Applebees?

 

"Service was bad." Specifically how? Your stateroom was not cleaned for five days? The woman at guest services refused to answer even simple questions? The crew didn't bow as your royal hiney walked by?

 

Just two examples, but you see what I mean? I need to know why you didn't like something but to post a review telling me how awful everything was with no specifics renders your "review" utterly worthless.

[Zach1213]

First-timers' reviews aren't worth reading, because they have nothing to compare it against.....:rolleyes:

 

I like them. They're almost always able to compare cruises to a land based vacation and offer fresh prospective on cruising than many CC people who take so many cruises that a ship is practically a legal address.

 

Roll your eyes at that all you want but some fresh blood in cruise reviews is nice to me. Not everyone is going to like cruising, and some reviews by first-timers can show why.

[johneeo]

The ones I like are from those that have done absolutely no planning or research whatsoever.

 

They go on their cruise clueless, however, after that, they find CC, come here, and their first post is a b11ch session on all the problems they encountered.

 

And, amazingly, they get offended when someone tells them that most of the problems they encountered were their own doing.

[avatheps]

I've seen glowing reports about this ship, but here's an honest opinion.......:rolleyes:

 

First-timers' reviews aren't worth reading, because they have nothing to compare it against.....:rolleyes:

 

Don't ever sail with ABC Cruises. Everything about our cruise was wrong ...... :rolleyes:

 

the ship has a few faults, but millions of reviewers exaggerate the problems .......... :rolleyes:

 

JB :)

...that a first timer's review is not worth reading. I may never have cruised before, but have been a world traveler for most of 45 years. I think I am just as qualified as any seasoned cruiser to recognize good/bad service, food or accommodations. I also believe I am just as capable of rendering an interesting and informative review.:rolleyes:

[Happy ks]

I enjoy reading them all...good, bad and ugly. The ones with the real negative gripes make me aware of what not to do :p I'm a bit wary of the glowing reviews, I've yet to take a cruise where everything is absolutely perfect, but the little glitches I just forgive and walk away.

 

I think the only thing that is a bit off-putting to me is when people state "the service was terrible" and make a blanket statement about every service person onboard when what they really have is a difference of opinion with one crew member.

 

It's interesting to read, say, 4 reviews on the exact same cruise. One has a lovely time and can't wait to go again, the next says it was the most horrible cruise ever in the history of cruising and warns people to never go on that ship. The next two have an OK time, but find fault in a bit of rust on the railing or stains on the carpet. I think it's all about expectation and perception.

 

Edit to add, I read them all...the next ship I will be cruising on, I don't read all the reviews!

[sail7seas]

The ones that irritate me the most are often from a first time poster who, it appears, registered for the mere purpose of knocking the ship. If they have credible, believable (to me) comments, fine but those who seem to have an axe to grind do not influence me at all. I sense they are looking to 'get even' and 'get something'. Constructive criticsm is fine, of course. Mean, get even sort of negativity is not useful to me .... I won't speak for others.

 

[sail7seas]

[

...that a first timer's review is not worth reading. I may never have cruised before, but have been a world traveler for most of 45 years. I think I am just as qualified as any seasoned cruiser to recognize good/bad service, food or accommodations. I also believe I am just as capable of rendering an interesting and informative review.:rolleyes:

 

 

I agree.

 

There are first time cruisers and then there are 'first time cruisers'. A well traveled, experienced poster who has been out and about in the world knows good or poor service, food and accomodations and I value what they have to say about their first cruise.

 

Yes, there is an adjustment from being used to staying in a Five star hotel in Europe to being on a seven day cruise on a mass market cruise line at spring break time. :D But most of us are able to grasp the differences.

 

A first time cruiesr's comments are sometimes very useful.... they are looking at the experience with fresh eyes. After 80+ cruises on HAL, I am less objective. I could be judged to have a 'dog in that fight'. :D

 

 

I

[Karysa]

My favourite reviews to read are ones written about the cruise that I was on. We had a great time on our last cruise and my review of course reflects this. The next reviewer stated that they had a good cruise and wrote about the things that they did on the cruise. The activities, entertainment and restaurants that this reviewer participated in or attended were so very different than the ones we did I couldnt help but think..we win!!

 

Sometimes I think it comes down to the company that you are with as well. Some people are more compatIble with each other on vacation than others. My least favourite cruise was the only one that we sailed on with another family. It may surprise you how one jerk of a teenager can spoil a cruise for 8 others.

[Aquahound]

The thing that narks me most in reviews is when people blame the cruise line or others for things that are their own fault, like intentionally trying to break a policy, but complain when they get caught.

 

Second would be the extremely insecure responses from people who can't handle a negative review about their favorite line.

 

Otherwise, I don't care. People write from their own perspective. I don't put much stock into any single review. I look for patterns.

[beachbum53]

I like them. They're almost always able to compare cruises to a land based vacation and offer fresh prospective on cruising than many CC people who take so many cruises that a ship is practically a legal address.

 

Roll your eyes at that all you want but some fresh blood in cruise reviews is nice to me. Not everyone is going to like cruising, and some reviews by first-timers can show why.

 

I suppose it's only natural for some first-time cruisers to compare their cruise to a land-based vacation, but in all reality, that's an unfair and unequal comparison. While there may be a few similarities, overall, the two are uniquely different. It would be more fair to compare two land-based vacations or two cruises. So reading a review (good or bad) that compares a cruise to a land-based vacation is, to me, worthless.

 

The ones I like are from those that have done absolutely no planning or research whatsoever.

 

They go on their cruise clueless, however, after that, they find CC, come here, and their first post is a b11ch session on all the problems they encountered.

 

And, amazingly, they get offended when someone tells them that most of the problems they encountered were their own doing.

 

Although there are a select few that take the time to do their "homework" and gather as much information as possible prior to booking their first cruise (and excursions), I suspect that the vast majority of first-timers forge ahead pretty much clueless, filled with unreasonably high expectations and a lot of misconceptions about cruising, based on things they've heard from friends and/or family members that have been on a cruise. It wouldn't surprise me that many of the first-timers that post their "b-tch fest" on here never return to C.C.

[Kathie859]

I enjoy reading others' experiences BUT I do read and try to put them in context with my own personal experiences and expectations. I've only been on a handful of cruises over the years; however, like another poster, I know what is good service and what are unrealistic expectations.

 

A poster who has nothing but over-the-top good or bad comments, I perceive to be less valuable than a true accounting of what worked and didn't work for them. It's like on TripAdvisor when a poster gives nothing but 5 stars to every hotel, restaurant, etc. that they review. That reviewer has no credibility in my book.

 

So I guess to answer the OP's question. Lopsided reviews "narc" me:rolleyes:

[John Bull]

 

I've seen glowing reports about this ship, but here's an honest opinion.......:rolleyes:

 

First-timers' reviews aren't worth reading, because they have nothing to compare it against.....:rolleyes:

 

Don't ever sail with ABC Cruises. Everything about our cruise was wrong ...... :rolleyes:

 

the ship has a few faults, but millions of reviewers exaggerate the problems .......... :rolleyes:

 

JB :)

 

 

Oh, dear.

A few of you have completely mis-read that post.

Wakey-wakey - it's those who say these things that irks me.

 

JB :rolleyes:

[johneeo]

Oh, dear.

A few of you have completely mis-read that post.

Wakey-wakey - it's those who say these things that irks me.

 

JB :rolleyes:

 

The brightest stars in the sky sometimes fail to shine on CC every day.:rolleyes:

[fishywood]

--The reviewer gives the ship a one or two star rating but when you read the text their only issue is that the weather was bad.

 

--Worse than the maddeningly vague complaints: the review that goes into minute detail as to how poor the service in the dining room was, or how incompetent their cabin steward was, yet they admit they chose to do nothing to address the problem while onboard.

 

--Another from the failed to do reasearch crowd: at least half the first timers' reviews of Princess mention that they did not get any towel animals. Boo hoo hoo.

 

--Latest trend in meaningless complaints: that there was not enough hand sanitizer stations on the ship, or the crew was not aggressive in forcing everyone to use it. IF that is true, it means that there have not been a high number of recent GI illness cases onboard. And if you are still worried, remember that only you can keep yourself healthy; it just doesn't matter if the other guy washes his hands, only that you do.

[SMerritt]

Interesting thread

 

I bite my tongue bloody with the below lone comment, not only in Cruise Reviews but in other CC areas

 

"I never have and never will sail on XYZ Cruiseline"

 

Period, End, with no explanation, or backup

[CaroleSS]

I would agree that the constant complainers are an annoyance, but I will be introspective for a moment, how about the "snarc-iness" of the cheerleaders?

 

We cruise several lines. Each has its pros and cons, we roll with the waves. BUT when there is an issue with ABC cruise line that is posted on that board, the fangs certainly come out! How dare someone think that MY favorite has <insert unflattering comment>!! It is as if they own the cruise line!

 

How about those that have a bazillion cruises points and always imply that the first timers just RUIN it for everyone as they aren't following the rules, or that they somehow better than the rest of us who travel in steerage class?

 

How about we show by example how to behave?