We know Celebrity monitors the board

[shoesonfire]

I've found all these comments helpful to understand the changes and price increases to date. We love Azamara specifically because of their warm and outstanding staff/crew. However after several AZ cruises and when their itineraries did not offer enough North American cruises and fares continued to rise, we looked again to Celebrity. We are hoping we won't be disappointed returning to X. Oceana does offer specials and have newer and reasonably small ships which we prefer, but when checking and comparing apples to apples the cost is often more than their competitors. It's a business and with downturns in worldwide economies I guess we have to expect cutbacks, price increases, etc. So what's a cruise lover to do?? Let's hope the cruise lines respect the opinions of their customers and strive to insure good value and safe travel experiences so that these same customers don't cutback as well.

[wwcruisers]

Besides, if X prices are going to keep going up, up, up, and with frequent sales by brands like Oceania, it may not be that much more to give them a try. It's not something we'd ever want to do, but we feel that Celebrity is forcing our hands. It's very sad.

 

Yes, Andy -- a quick perusal of the 2015 prices makes X's party line of: "We're cutting perks/services/quality to keep our pricing competitive" seem rather disingenuous, doesn't it? :rolleyes:

[Cruising89143]

Cruised in March on the Reflection and other than a bad Rib Eye steak in Tuscan we enjoyed all of the specialty dining which is where we dined most nights. I have no issues with the current on board product. Guess I'm easy to please.

 

I'm sure that X reads the boards. Not sure how much weight a few people on a discussion board carry with their comments verses the large number of guests who cruise on board week after week.

[Gracie115]

I'm sure that X reads the boards. Not sure how much weight a few people on a discussion board carry with their comments verses the large number of guests who cruise on board week after week.

 

There are far more than a FEW people on these boards. I wonder if there is a count anywhere of how many Cruise Critic Board posters there are....Host Andy, any idea?

[Cruising89143]

There are far more than a FEW people on these boards. I wonder if there is a count anywhere of how many Cruise Critic Board posters there are....Host Andy, any idea?

 

Compared to the number of guests that cruise on X each week the number is low but if it makes you feel better then believe what you want. I guess most of us are just easy to please and cruise to relax and not look for the negative things.;)

Edited May 4, 2014 by cruisingator2

[Andy]

There are far more than a FEW people on these boards. I wonder if there is a count anywhere of how many Cruise Critic Board posters there are....Host Andy, any idea?

 

Hi Gracie,

 

Last I heard, there were 1,000,000+ CC members, so it's anything but a few. With all due respect, it saddens me when a few folks insist on injecting the "we're only a few" message.

 

Perhaps if you consider every person that walks on every cruise ship each week... we are a small percentage. HOWEVER, I submit that our valued community members are extremely passionate about each of the respective cruise brands... and for that, the cruise lines should be paying very close attention to what's said. If I were a cruise line CEO, I'd absolutely want to hear from someone who's been on many sailings, and spent big money with their brand - but that's just my logic. Hope I'm not alone.

[Andy]

Cruised in March on the Reflection and other than a bad Rib Eye steak in Tuscan we enjoyed all of the specialty dining which is where we dined most nights. I have no issues with the current on board product. Guess I'm easy to please.

 

 

Thanks for reminding me cruisingator ! I must finish my Eclipse insights. Getting to it right now :)

[Gracie115]

Compared to the number of guests that cruise on X each week the number is low but if it makes you feel better then believe what you want. I guess most of us are just easy to please and cruise to relax and not look for the negative things.;)

 

I'm NOT looking for negative things. I've commented on what I've seen posted here for the last several months. I am well aware of the 1000's of people who sail every week. I'm also well aware of what small marketing samples are taken to "test" items. It does not take talking to 1000's to evaluate a brand. The vast majority will always remain silent. I'm also not looking for a fight here. I asked a valid question about how much X listens to those who post here, I believe this is, outside of Facebook, the largest cruise forum around. And, Facebook, is, well, Facebook.... Many of the people who post here are long time X fans, including myself & Host Andy, did you read his posts on this thread? I would certainly not ignore people who are interested in my brand just because it does not include the 1000's of other silent ones. There is absolutely no question that the brand has reduced service and quality in the last few years as is evidenced by the reduction in staff, entertainment and some food quality. I'm glad you had a great cruise,:) I hope my next one is as good. :)

[Gracie115]

Hi Gracie,

 

Last I heard, there were 1,000,000+ CC members, so it's anything but a few. With all due respect, it saddens me when a few folks insist on injecting the "we're only a few" message.

 

Perhaps if you consider every person that walks on every cruise ship each week... we are a small percentage. HOWEVER, I submit that our valued community members are extremely passionate about each of the respective cruise brands... and for that, the cruise lines should be paying very close attention to what's said. If I were a cruise line CEO, I'd absolutely want to hear from someone who's been on many sailings, and spent big money with their brand - but that's just my logic. Hope I'm not alone.

 

Thanks for the verification Andy, I suspected there were many, many here.....pretty impressive total!!! Even more reason the cruiselines should be paying attention.

[Cruising89143]

Hi Gracie,

 

Last I heard, there were 1,000,000+ CC members, so it's anything but a few. With all due respect, it saddens me when a few folks insist on injecting the "we're only a few" message.

 

Perhaps if you consider every person that walks on every cruise ship each week... we are a small percentage. HOWEVER, I submit that our valued community members are extremely passionate about each of the respective cruise brands... and for that, the cruise lines should be paying very close attention to what's said. If I were a cruise line CEO, I'd absolutely want to hear from someone who's been on many sailings, and spent big money with their brand - but that's just my logic. Hope I'm not alone.

 

And you made my point.;)

[ghstudio]

And you made my point.;)

 

If you accept that most folks aren't vocal about issues (or pluses) and you believe that those here are those looking for problems or finding issues and are the "few" that are vocal.......the last thing a company wants is vocal folks who aren't positive about the brand or the offering.

 

So I think you perhaps are focused on the wrong apple.....we aren't the lunatic fringe....most of those who are more or less regular posters are just normal folks like you and your friends who enjoy cruising and we have enjoyed celebrity over the years (based on our captain's club levels). I think the right apple is that the vocal few (if you call us that) are not being as positive as before about Celebrity. For everyone who posts here, there are probably 10 lurkers (perhaps more) and most of us socialize and since we enjoy cruising that's often a discussion topic. We are actually the folks Celebrity should care most about...we are their free advertising, we are their free publicists...or we should be.

 

Doesn't matter though....the truth will be RCL's bottom line. It's easy to cut costs and look good in the short term....but at some point you have to stop cutting costs. As you cut costs, it makes it harder to increase prices/revenue and at some point, if you're not careful you wind up with a poor offering where you cant' increase prices because the offering doesn't warrant the prices. Some execs actually are known for doing the drastic cost cutting and then moving on before the pendulum swings the other way.

 

Think about car dealers....some focus on selling you a car and once you've signed the bottom line and driven out could care less about you....they hire salesman and keep them about three months. Then there are the car dealers that understand that if they build a relationship with you, you'll return and you'll bring friends to buy cars. For now, celebrity seems to be in the former group focused on getting you on the ship...but not focusing on the experience you get on the ship (my opinion of course). I don't buy cars from the former group car dealers...but I've brought lots of business to that group that builds relationships. Celebrity could learn from the car business....

Edited May 4, 2014 by ghstudio

[Cruising89143]

The local watering hole. Eventually they all show up!:)

[USVI-4-me]

I'm overdue for a cruise.

What ship or lines are posters recommending?

 

What lines have ships leaving Florida over the summer.

I love Freedom OS but been there and done that.

Don't want to go aboard Disney.

 

Give some suggestions please.

Is Celebrity in Florida over the summer?

 

-Marisa

[Andy]

I'm overdue for a cruise.

What ship or lines are posters recommending?

 

What lines have ships leaving Florida over the summer.

I love Freedom OS but been there and done that.

Don't want to go aboard Disney.

 

Give some suggestions please.

Is Celebrity in Florida over the summer?

 

-Marisa

 

Hi Marisa,

 

Celebrity hasn't had a ship in Florida since the Summer of 2010. For this season, RCCL, Princess, Norwegian & MSC have ships sailing out of Ft Lauderdale and Miami. We are considering both RCCL and Princess.

 

Hope this helps !

Edited May 4, 2014 by Host Andy

[ORV]

There are far more than a FEW people on these boards. I wonder if there is a count anywhere of how many Cruise Critic Board posters there are....Host Andy, any idea?

 

Hi Gracie,

 

Last I heard, there were 1,000,000+ CC members, so it's anything but a few. With all due respect, it saddens me when a few folks insist on injecting the "we're only a few" message.

 

Perhaps if you consider every person that walks on every cruise ship each week... we are a small percentage. HOWEVER, I submit that our valued community members are extremely passionate about each of the respective cruise brands... and for that, the cruise lines should be paying very close attention to what's said. If I were a cruise line CEO, I'd absolutely want to hear from someone who's been on many sailings, and spent big money with their brand - but that's just my logic. Hope I'm not alone.

 

Here's a good baseline if anyone cares to check it out. Go to the Celebrity Roll Calls, pick any one of them, find a posting toward the end of a cruise coming up in the near future and count the number of cruisers vs the capacity of the ship it's on. Usually someone will keep a running total. My occasional counts on these tend to be about 10%, definitely a good sampling. Then count in those that lurk(no real way of knowing how many but you can bet they're there)

 

Other lines will have less, Oceania for example generally has much less participation on their Roll Calls, of course their ships are smaller but it's all relative.

[dkjretired]

Thanks for the verification Andy, I suspected there were many, many here.....pretty impressive total!!! Even more reason the cruiselines should be paying attention.

 

As of my posting this there are 1,113,574 members, 1,881,167 threads and 40,548,339 posts. Its on the page with all the cruise lines and subject listed on the bottom.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/index.php

Edited May 4, 2014 by dkjretired

[Lady Slipper]

Thank you for your comments Balloon Man. I totally agree that all cruise lines could have learned a great deal from Azamara's Social Media strategy. Not so much from Azamara directly, but from Bill's many accomplishments. He knew how to handle everything with tact and class, and knew exactly how to deliver the message, whether good or bad. As Bill & I frequently discussed, it's not only about the message, but it's about establishing a connection and trust with your audience. Most all cruise lines treat us like we are robots, and there's no personal connection - which Bill & myself were/are very passionate about. IMO, that's a major miscalculation by the cruise lines.

 

Azamara has recently replaced Mr Leiber with a new CBO. It's too soon to pass judgement on her, but Bill handled Azamara's CBO responsibilities with perfection, and is sorely missed - both as Azamara's CBO, and a very dear friend. IMO, Bill is irreplaceable.

 

Rest in Peace Bill.

 

I am so sad to hear about Bill`s passing. I was so impressed with the way he communicated and helped people on CC. Celebrity could certainly use someone like him monitoring these posts. He made you feel like a valued customer.

You will be sorely missed Bill

[Shake]

Passenger comment cards, letters and emails are what primarily drive change, not Cruise Critic.

 

98% of all Celebrity passengers don't even read Cruise Critic, do you really think Corporate seriously listens to a message board that only represents the 2% of their customers? :D:D

[Orator]

Passenger comment cards, letters and emails are what primarily drive change, not Cruise Critic.

 

98% of all Celebrity passengers don't even read Cruise Critic, do you really think Corporate seriously listens to a message board that only represents the 2% of their customers? :D:D

 

Yes they do. Remember the "X the Rules" campaign? I've been told by a number of Senior Officers that Celebrity takes comments from all sources seriously. Why fo you think Michael Bayley came on Cruise Critic shortly after he was named President? Why do they pay a person, or persons at corporate to monitor the boards?

[cpj]

Yes they do. Remember the "X the Rules" campaign? I've been told by a number of Senior Officers that Celebrity takes comments from all sources seriously. Why fo you think Michael Bayley came on Cruise Critic shortly after he was named President? Why do they pay a person, or persons at corporate to monitor the boards?

 

Why bother to monitor the boards when they do nothing about there website. They must know its one of the worst out there.

[Quo Vadis?]

Cruised in March on the Reflection and other than a bad Rib Eye steak in Tuscan we enjoyed all of the specialty dining which is where we dined most nights. I have no issues with the current on board product. Guess I'm easy to please.

 

Obviously the food in the MDR nor the declining service noted by many posters is of any concern when one does not eat with the masses.

 

The current onboard product in the specialty restaurant only offered you one bad meal out of seven. I would be pleased with 6 good meals and service out of 7 in the MDR.

[Shake]

Yes they do. Remember the "X the Rules" campaign? I've been told by a number of Senior Officers that Celebrity takes comments from all sources seriously. Why fo you think Michael Bayley came on Cruise Critic shortly after he was named President? Why do they pay a person, or persons at corporate to monitor the boards?

 

What your believe to be attention from Mr. Bayley is really only good old public relations and corporate lip service.

 

Celebrity comment cards, letters and emails evoke change not a small minority message board.

[ghstudio]

What your believe to be attention from Mr. Bayley is really only good old public relations and corporate lip service.

 

Celebrity comment cards, letters and emails evoke change not a small minority message board.

 

It's funny...when you read comment cards, letters and emails, it's so easy to find support for whatever you are doing and dismiss the rest as unimportant. It's human nature. Celebrity is on a course to improve the bottom line and improve the stock price...that's clear. The fastest way to do that is to cut costs...and then your read the comment cards and find that most don't say anything...so you declare success. You ignore those who write some negative comment as being part of the 2% who are always negative...and so on. Letters and emails are always negative...they don't drive change, they drive reaction and form letters so executives don't have to think about the issues...since they already know what they are doing is ok.

 

I'm stretching a point...but I've been there....I know how groups in large corporations react and I know how executives act. The group tries to to slant all information to support the executive...and the executive knows he's right so he just keeps going along with his plan.

 

CC is probably a more accurate view on what's going on then the comment cards...and certainly more accurate than letters and emails (which are the least effective).

 

If the executive says I want to improve the bottom line by x...the staff will cut to make that number and they will support their success in making that move with reports that say they've had no complaints, etc.

 

You really have to live in the corporate world to understand the phenomena. Yes, I'm sure celebrity HQ reads CC and looks at all the comment cards, mail, emails but I'm also sure that Michael Bayley is hearing that he has made all the right decisions and sees quotes from positive feedback. No one tells the top exec that he's gone too far or perhaps should temper his pace.

 

I think CC is a representative cross section of passengers and loyal passengers....but I think few of the comments here get to Bayley's ears....except the ones that say something like: "Cruised in March on the Reflection and other than a bad Rib Eye steak in Tuscan we enjoyed all of the specialty dining which is where we dined most nights. I have no issues with the current on board product."

[PartyAllDaTyme]

Two cases in point where X listened to Cruise Critic members-- the ill-fated "X The Rules" ad campaign and the revised Captain's Club tiers. I'd wager the constant chatter here about the need for an Elite Plus level finally convinced them of that need, and only secondarily the voices of non-CC customers.

 

I'd also wager they weigh all comments, as well as most of the comments on Cruise Critic, but after counting all the beans feel that they can't please everyone, or can't afford to please everyone. And continually responding with "We took that into consideration, but at this time it's not economically viable" would get old after a while. Why they don't take the hints about their frustrating website, though, I'll never know.

 

But I certainly think Celebrity Cruises (the Cruise Critic member, not the cruise line) could be much more active. Currently, he/she/it's averaging only one post every four days. He/she/it could at least respond to my friend request:rolleyes::):cool:! Shouldn't Celebrity Cruises want to be friends with everyone?;)

[elena7seas]

Passenger comment cards, letters and emails are what primarily drive change, not Cruise Critic.

 

98% of all Celebrity passengers don't even read Cruise Critic, do you really think Corporate seriously listens to a message board that only represents the 2% of their customers? :D:D

 

Where do you get that statistic?

 

I regularly keep a list of all of the people who post on the Roll Calls of ships that I am sailing (which has usually been Celebrity). Sometimes I am officially keeping track of the Roll Call, and sometimes not, but I almost always maintain a list, as it helps to keep me straight about who's who when I meet them on board.

 

I have to make it clear that the running total that I maintain reflects the number of people represented by the posters. My husband does not post on Cruise Critic, but his opinion is reflected in almost everything I write, as we are very much on the same page where Celebrity is concerned. When I post my reaction to an experience on a Celebrity ship, I am almost always posting the opinion of two people.

 

On the last two ships that I have sailed, the percentage of cruisers reflected on the Roll Calls have been as follows:

 

Century Caribbean: 11.3% (this percentage would certainly have been higher, as I had to give up keeping track of this Roll Call at the end of October, and there were several names added to the Roll Call between November and February)

 

Silhouette Transatlantic: 11.0%

 

I am able to calculate these percentages because I recorded the number of passengers on these sailings, as reported by the Captain. Keep in mind that the number of passengers includes children and youth, so the effective percentage of those who are accessing Cruise Critic would really be higher.

 

I don't think most people who disparage the relative importance of the number of cruisers who post on Cruise Critic realize how small a statistically-reliable representative sample can be.

 

My examples of the Roll Calls may not be scientifically-constructed stratified random samples, but as a certain type of cluster sample, they do represent a significant percentage of Celebrity cruisers. I really don't think Celebrity would be ignoring the feedback from Cruise Critic.

 

And it is also my guess, although I have absolutely nothing to back this up, that sometimes a trial initiative is launched, such as (possibly) the revised Elite Breakfast on Summit, and the feedback on Cruise Critic becomes a part of the decision-making process. The response on Cruise Critic to such changes is swift, comprehensive, international and detailed. If you want to test the pulse of your cruising public, why would you ignore such a rich source of feedback that comes to you at absolutely no cost?

 

I think the fact that "Celebrity Cruises" dedicates as much time as he/she does to this forum is proof of the value of this forum to Celebrity, and I appreciate the time that Celebrity has dedicated to Cruise Critic. I likewise appreciate the answers that "Celebrity Cruises" is able to provide, while recognizing there are some questions to which Celebrity will never reply..