Why all the Vision of the Seas negativity?

[mommabean]

Wow, Gina, that's saying something because I know you love Radiance. Glad you chimed in with your comments because the other post had me worried for a second. Looking forward to your further comments.

 

You know my other two favorites well. :) EN was my first and is back in the top 3. I'm not on RD as often as I used to be but still love her. But after my 24 days on VI pre-drydock, she soared to the top. March out of Colon was just as great. As was the last 10 days.

 

I'm detoxing now after ODing on sweet and yummy chocolate covered strawberries for 10 days available constantly in both lounges. ;)

 

I'm still typing out a few things gradually before posting. Sorry...I'm long winded. :eek:

 

Gina

[mommabean]

We were on the Sept 1, 10 night cruise to Charleston, Bermuda, Nassau, and Coco Cay. We knew the hours of our port stop in Bermuda before we booked the cruise and those hours were never changed. We were willing to spend 2 nights and a full day and a half. In hindsight we would have only booked the one day transportation pass. Sunday bus service started too late. But they did add many "special" busses to the schedule that day. As soon as bus number 7 left full, a "special" was brought in to transport the overflow. Had we known bus service would be more often than every hour on Sunday, we might have ventured farther. We ended up just riding the bus once on Sunday , back to the ship, after walking to our first destination.

 

We found at least 2 stores open in the port area and at least 2 restaurants on the first night. It was nice they had the bus ticket office open so we could be ready to go in the morning without having to buy our bus ticket. The ticket start time is validated upon first use.

 

We walked to see the sea glass on the last morning around 9am. No wonder the beach was nearly depleted. There is a reason it's against the law to take the glass. People hoard it. :( Here is where we caught the bus back, completely forgetting we wanted to walk across the street to the cemetery.

 

We ate in the dining room just twice and my Salmon was perfect the first night and very slightly over cooked the second night. I always get the fish with no sauce. The service and the rest of the meal was excellent.

 

We ate in Izumi 3 times, Chops and Giovanni's each 1 time, Chef's Table once, and with you know who once. One night we ate in Park Cafe. All of our meals were wonderful. The Chef's Table has always been nice on every ship. Yes, we eat here once a cruise. I thought this Chef's Table was the best yet. Even the wine was nice. It's not the same on each ship. The chef was a bit shy but the food was all excellent and beautiful. Maxi, from the Philippines, is an experienced server/wine steward who came to Vision to open Chef's Table after having excelled in this position on Oasis.

 

The maitre'd seems a little quiet and reserved but that may be because he's new to the ship and is the reliever. The regular maitre'd came from Enchantment and Brilliance as a reliever on those ships. He will be back on VI by our November cruise. He is Alper Alpar from Turkey and is a super guy. We're looking forward to seeing him.

 

The specialty dining manager is a very professional and welcoming woman named Jennifer. She has experience at this from another ship and I saw her often visiting tables in the restaurants. She is a lovely woman.

 

We always make a point of hovering around our room at the beginning of the muster drill since we know the stateroom attendants will be out putting the unoccupied signs in the doors. We saw our stateroom attendant, Rodney from Costa Rica, and gave him our few requests at this time. The only time we didn't see him in the evening before dinner was when we left our room before 5. Sometimes we missed him in the morning since we are early risers and off the ship immediately when in port. Since the CL and DL open at 5, anyone going there before early dinner is not going to see their attendant. Normally we left to go to one of the lounges around 5:30 or 6pm. We went to both lounges and thought both concierges were over the top great. We didn't ever sit in the CL but always outside at the bar in the overflow area. Most of the time it was just us and another couple there. Half the time we went to the DL and sat inside the lounge at least 3 times. The concierge always greeted us immediately and came to find out what we'd like to drink and personally made it himself since he was in the habit of helping his bar server. We also went out to sit at the bar in the overflow with Steve, very possibly one of the best bartenders every. He smiles, and laughs and enjoys his work and it shows. No wonder he won the smile of the month last month. His bar was always packed and his service was fast.

 

We also stopped by the R bar and the Casino bar to get a quick drink with our pre-loaded sea pass. We never waited more than a couple of minutes for drink service in any location on any night. We did not sit out in an over flow area waiting for a server to work a crowded room. I DID see MJ, the DL concierge come out of his lounge and socialize with the overflow guests. He's an amazing guy and a natural at his job.

 

Betsy grabbed a Coco Cay cabana for us with no problem. She is a beautiful, friendly, and helpful lady. Both concierges were tipped for their excellence.

 

OH wait, I got sidetracked. Back to Rodney. My husband and I both agreed he is at the top of the list for stateroom attendant excellence - out of our about 80 cruises. In 10 days he didn't miss even the slightest thing. If I moved a shampoo or conditioner to the shower, it was immediately replaced. I asked for a tan blanket since the comforter is to hot for me. He didn't just leave it as most do. He actually made it onto my side of the bed so I could toss of the comforter when I went to bed and have my side made comfortably. When I moved the towels to a dryer location I liked better, he continued to put the towels in the same location each day. He was friendly, pleasant, fast and efficient. If we left, when we came back, the room was done. I had the same room booked for November and he will be there. But I had to change the room location since this was the noisiest location I've ever had. It was directly below the coffee station on the pool deck. It sounded like herds of elephants all day long with the only quiet break being from 2am - 4am.

 

Most people would go to guest services and complain about the room noise, I'm sure, and the response would likely be future cruise credit. I believe in live and learn. Ships aren't quiet and every location can't be perfect. I chose this location so I could have a better view of the bridge. Next cruise I have chosen to be under the quiet spa. :) I learned my lesson.

 

The only other negative was not Vision related but passenger related. Unless of course we can blame crew for not removing all the chair hog's towels, books, and hats. I went to the solarium on sea days before 8am to find a seat. I'd sit down and stay. One morning I was there around 7:45 and was surprised to find most of the chairs occupied by items and very few people. I found 2 chairs together behind the hot tub. I looked around the corner and spotted 2 more chairs together in the second row, set back, but with a view of the pool. I went there instead. My husband came, I went to get coffee. Then a man came and started accusing my husband of moving his towels. "I came down and saved this whole row of chairs at 6am". To which my husband said, "do you think it's alright to save all these chairs that early and not be sitting in them?" The guy shut up. But my husband didn't know if I had found the chairs empty, which I had. So there were 7 chairs left, 2 women came to sit in them, and no one else came to join them until 10am. At no time were all of those chairs occupied. Those chairs and others were hogged for 3 to 4 hours unused. The only thing I didn't like about this cruise were the few (very few) rude and selfish passengers.

 

The demographics was also a first for us. There were 6 children on board - all babies. The majority of the passengers were very senior. It seemed a bit like a nursing home at times. (School has started, 10 day cruise from Florida) I don't mean that as an insult because I spent many years visiting my father in a nursing home with lovely residents. But this is what I imagine Holland America to be like. So many walkers, scooters, and canes. I like to move and walk quickly. I felt trapped behind people very often. I prefer a broader demographic, children included.

 

I saw the suite breakfast waiters from March working downstairs in the dining room and they both remembered and greeted us. Yes, I saw some new faces but that doesn't mean they are new to the ship. I saw many regular crew members including the beverage manager and the sweetest head bartender ever. Both were out and about the ship all the time working hard. I see officers on this ship more often than any other ship and that's saying a lot since I see them everywhere on EN, too.

 

They are still having the officer scavenger hunt. I won one of the meals in March so I didn't play this time allowing others the opportunity to win.

 

The Parade of Flags on the last night was terrific. Even the juggler in the theater prior to the parade was interesting and unique. I missed many of the shows having seen quite a few before of having meal reservations previously made.

 

And even my all time favorite DJ was on board. It was such a pleasant surprise to see him guarding the priority theater seating on the first night. DJ Conrad!!! We go way back to EN out of Fort Lauderdale. I've run into him a few times since. Yael might remember him.

 

I should read my cruise compass. Apparently there was a Cigar party organized on the pool deck one evening in the smoking area. My husband would have enjoyed that since we will smoke a cigar or two on a cruise only.

 

I could probably say more, but I won't. Unless anyone wants to hear where NOT to go in Nassau…one of my favorite regular ports. Maybe I should save it for the port of call forum. :)

 

Gina

[ValerieJo]

Thank you for starting this thread. We are going in March 2015 and taking our adult kids on their first cruise. I was begin to worry if I made a mistake choosing this ship as I want them to see what cruising is all about.

 

Hopefully, people will keep adding their positive reviews and comments for all of us 'yet to cruise' on Vision.

[mommabean]

I thought of a few more things I forgot to mention. We were invited to all the behind the scenes tours. We accepted the offer for the bridge and galley. We forgot to go to the bridge tour. We accepted the first of two galley tour offers - the one for the Chef's Table guests - since it would likely be smaller than the C&A tour.

 

I saw an afternoon deck party being served - Paella - like they always have on Vision. I don't remember the day.

 

The juggler on the last night did spin plates but there was an impressive change in the show for those who stuck around.

 

I never ate in the windjammer. Not once. Not after seeing a kid on Radiance put the salad dressing up to her nose to smell it and proceeded to accidentally touch it to her lips only to put it back in the container. There are some things hand sanitizer just can't handle.

 

The barista at Lattetudes is named Jennifer. I'm sure there are others working there. But this cheerful young lady started out as a cleaner. I met her back in August as she was pushing luggage when she found my mislabeled luggage by writing my old and new room number on her arm. I changed my room but RCI didn't change it on my print out labels which I didn't realize until too late. She was actively addressing my issue, working hard, and continues to do so with a smile. She'll serve you some really nice pastries (better than the routine stuff), no purchase required.

 

They had an offer in the photo studio for 5 pictures, any size, for $49.95. This offer was for diamond C&A members and above I think. They called it a "diamond offer" so I assume this means C&A. This was in addition to the 2 free pictures we already get.

 

I walked into the bathroom outside the dining room one night to find a scary looking woman in there. I thought she was confused and missed her face while putting on makeup. It turned out she was a "Thriller" dancer. There were probably close to 20 people who committed to that class for several days so they could entertain us one evening.

 

I didn't think the wifi worked so great. I realized later that it doesn't work so great on my phone but worked a whole lot better on my macbook.

 

Capt. Marek is quite sociable. I'm sure he'll end up being one of the most well liked captains in the fleet.

[irishgal432]

Thank you for your review. We were in a GS in July and had no noise issues, only surprised window washing employees that got an eyeful as I was dressing because I wasn't notified they were coming:o

 

I am going again in October and was curious, what was your stateroom number?

[mommabean]

Thank you for your review. We were in a GS in July and had no noise issues, only surprised window washing employees that got an eyeful as I was dressing because I wasn't notified they were coming:o

 

I am going again in October and was curious, what was your stateroom number?

 

8022 - the most forward JS port side.

 

I've been in the farthest forward GS 8006 and the OS 8004 next door to it on Vision and had no noise issues. I've been in a GS starboard not quite all the way forward and had no issues either.

 

This noise wasn't from crew servicing the coffee station. It wasn't even from chairs scraping the floor. It was from constant walking around. And with the new "wood" like floors around the pool deck, it must radiate all around from that area. It sounded like herds of elephants at times and other times just one elephant at a time. Forget a peaceful nap with the pool deck full of people on sea days.

 

And the white party dancing on the pool deck was like being there. :)

 

Gina

Edited September 12, 2014 by mommabean

[Mary&Jim]

Isn't it funny how people on the same cruise have totally different experiences. My husband and several friends just returned from the 9/1 Bermuda sailing and had a terrific time. I absolutely love this ship! Perfect-off course not, but keep things in perspective. Many folks would love to be able to cruise as often as some of us do, but can't.

 

The only issues I witnessed were several rude passengers, once in the Windjammer and another time in the Centrum. I'll save the details, but both passengers were bullies. I'll never understand people who feel rules don't apply to them.

 

In Bermuda, we walked to the sea glass beach and only took pics! We did walk over to the cemetery. Sad, lots of young sailors buried there with their cause of death on each stone. We met several friendly local folks along the way who were happy to give us directions.

 

We've been on a lot of RCCL ships, and I think the Vision is one of my favorites. The size is perfect and the visibility of the officers is the most I've ever experienced.

 

Hope to sail on her again.

 

Mary

Edited September 12, 2014 by Mary&Jim
typo

[2gator]

We were also on the Vision September 1 cruise to Bermuda. We agree completely with mommabean and enjoyed the cruise very much. We did the bridge tour and were pleased to have Captain Merick conduct our tour personally. Also took part in the galley tour and behind the scenes tour.

[Deatsch]

To the person who wanted to know about the craps table.

 

Yep, it's there.

 

My name is Jim and I play craps...

[irishgal432]

8022 - the most forward JS port side.

 

I've been in the farthest forward GS 8006 and the OS 8004 next door to it on Vision and had no noise issues. I've been in a GS starboard not quite all the way forward and had no issues either.

 

This noise wasn't from crew servicing the coffee station. It wasn't even from chairs scraping the floor. It was from constant walking around. And with the new "wood" like floors around the pool deck, it must radiate all around from that area. It sounded like herds of elephants at times and other times just one elephant at a time. Forget a peaceful nap with the pool deck full of people on sea days.

 

And the white party dancing on the pool deck was like being there. :)

 

Gina

 

Thank you.

[fishywood]

Isn't it funny how people on the same cruise have totally different experiences. My husband and several friends just returned from the 9/1 Bermuda sailing and had a terrific time.

Mary

 

And isn't is really funny how those who enjoyed this particular cruise the most are exclusively citing their Diamond perks as the reasons why. Glad you all enjoyed the freebies subsidized by the prices us peons paid for our drinks.

 

When I mentioned on Cruise Critic after my Celebrity cruise two years ago how disappointed I was that a galley tour was only offered to the uber-loyal muckity-mucks, I was lambasted and called a jealous hater. Not glad to see the same is true on RCI--but at least I feel my earlier opinion was valid after all.

[mommabean]

We were also on the Vision September 1 cruise to Bermuda. We agree completely with mommabean and enjoyed the cruise very much. We did the bridge tour and were pleased to have Captain Merick conduct our tour personally. Also took part in the galley tour and behind the scenes tour.

 

I figured the captain would do the tour. That's why I wanted to go. It's really nice when a captain conducts the tour. It makes it extra special. Apparently I was enjoying my time in the solarium pool too much to remember to go. This was a first for me - hanging out in the pool on sea days.

 

Gina

[GMoney]

I'm in 8008 in November and concerned about noise issues. Maybe I'll be lucky.

 

Irishgal - What GS were you in?

 

Thank you for your review. We were in a GS in July and had no noise issues, only surprised window washing employees that got an eyeful as I was dressing because I wasn't notified they were coming:o

 

I am going again in October and was curious, what was your stateroom number?

 

8022 - the most forward JS port side.

 

I've been in the farthest forward GS 8006 and the OS 8004 next door to it on Vision and had no noise issues. I've been in a GS starboard not quite all the way forward and had no issues either.

 

This noise wasn't from crew servicing the coffee station. It wasn't even from chairs scraping the floor. It was from constant walking around. And with the new "wood" like floors around the pool deck, it must radiate all around from that area. It sounded like herds of elephants at times and other times just one elephant at a time. Forget a peaceful nap with the pool deck full of people on sea days.

 

And the white party dancing on the pool deck was like being there. :)

 

Gina

Edited September 13, 2014 by GMoney

[sasysutler]

Let me start over.. The ports were great.. just not enough time, BUT the lack of service no matter what cruise line, no matter what tier you are at, should not be tolerated.

 

I am also diamond, but that doesn't mean I am any better than anyone. Plain simple facts...

 

1. food was bland, cold, not great, but this was in the main dining room. We did not go to the paid places.

 

2. It should not take 5 days to find your room steward, and we were in our room many times. You should not have to beg for shampoos or soap just because you are on a lower deck than the suites where they were provided with no problems.

 

3. entertainment is subjective, and I will leave it there.. but I have seen better shows on other royal ships with more enthusiasim from the staff.

just reporting from our point of view

4. POSITIVES.. The activities staff were great.. something happening all the time. Captain Merrick is great and will be an asset.

 

Everyone see things differently.. it's all about opinions. We met great people, made our own fun, and will sill cruise...

[irishgal432]

I'm in 8008 in November and concerned about noise issues. Maybe I'll be lucky.

 

Irishgal - What GS were you in?

 

I was in 8012, no noise. I think you will be fine.

[tvmovielover]

We enjoyed the 9/1 cruise, our 2nd on RCL, and think it was very good value like the first. That said, I would advise people not to get a 8*** cabin if possible-aft it was noisy whether in a suite or an inside at times (we noticed this more at night than during the day). The MDR food was definitely not as good as on our previous cruise and varied from good to barely edible. We thought the crew was friendly and helpful all over the ship unlike some of the passengers. There did seem to be a lot of people you had to dodge around because of their movement challenges but the kids, considering they were all so young were not an issue that I saw. All in all we would recommend this cruise to others. Our other cruise was on the Brilliance which we enjoyed except for the numbers of passengers. I preferred this smaller ship.

[Trainman-2]

We just returned from the 1 September sailing and had a great time. Check out my live report here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2095089

[GMoney]

I was in 8012, no noise. I think you will be fine.

 

Thanks very much for the info

[mommabean]

We just returned from the 1 September sailing and had a great time. Check out my live report here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2095089

 

Thanks for posting the picture of the barbecue on the pool deck. I saw it but didn't take photos. It was reported that this wasn't done the entire cruise.

 

Gina

[akcruz]

I think sometimes it comes down to attitude and expectations. We just got to diamond on our Vision cruise last month so did not have the CL or DL available to us, but overall had a wonderful time. Be nice to the staff and they in turn will provide great service. Was our cruise perfect, absolutely not, but it was one we would repeat in a heartbeat given the chance.

[JimAOk1945]

Thank you for starting this thread. Hopefully, people will keep adding their positive reviews and comments for all of us 'yet to cruise' on Vision.

 

Thank you for posting your comments. I'm glad I started this thread (see post #1).

 

I've learned a lot from the comments posted here by experienced "Vision" cruisers. It's beneficial to me and anyone else considering a cruise on this ship. I realize each ship, crew, and cruise can vary even within the same cruise line. But, I'm one of those guys who likes to know all the details ahead of time.

 

I hope to see more reviews and comments soon.

Edited September 13, 2014 by JimAOk1945

[yj2cute]

And isn't is really funny how those who enjoyed this particular cruise the most are exclusively citing their Diamond perks as the reasons why. Glad you all enjoyed the freebies subsidized by the prices us peons paid for our drinks.

 

When I mentioned on Cruise Critic after my Celebrity cruise two years ago how disappointed I was that a galley tour was only offered to the uber-loyal muckity-mucks, I was lambasted and called a jealous hater. Not glad to see the same is true on RCI--but at least I feel my earlier opinion was valid after all.

 

And you still sound like a jealous hater. The perks enjoyed by high level Crown and Anchor members are offered by the cruise line as a thank you for their loyalty and the many thousands of dollars those members paid traveling on multiple cruises to get to that level. That "uber loyalty" pays off. ;)

[wieslaw]

Let me start over.. ...., BUT the lack of service no matter what cruise line, no matter what tier you are at, should not be tolerated.

 

I am also diamond, but that doesn't mean I am any better than anyone. Plain simple facts...

 

1. food was bland, cold, not great, but this was in the main dining room. We did not go to the paid places.

 

2. It should not take 5 days to find your room steward, and we were in our room many times. You should not have to beg for shampoos or soap just because you are on a lower deck than the suites where they were provided with no problems.

 

..........

 

Everyone see things differently.. it's all about opinions. We met great people, made our own fun, and will sill cruise...

 

Hi,

I read your review few spots above and I appreciate your observations. Seems to me that something had to be wrong - or you would not write about it.

Seems that you spent more time in the MDR than some of the other posters ( who mostly ate in the paid restaurants) so you could make better observation about the food in the MDR..... and some other posters above ( who ate in the MDR) have similar opinion about the food in the MDR as well.

 

We sailed on Vision before and we liked our cruise ..... and we will be sailing on her again .... and are hoping for another enjoyable cruise.

 

Thank you and others who keep posting their reviews and observations.

Edited September 13, 2014 by wieslaw

[kneadsdough2cruise]

Have to say we were not too sure what to expect on our return to Vision after all the other new classes of ships more recently sailed on but.....WOW, we loved it and will be back soon.

Also just returned from the 9-1-14 trip 10 days palm trees and pink sands:

 

For us the food was tasty, fresh, hot and seasoned well for all dinners (1 Chops, 1 Giovanni's, 7 MDR Dinners and one suite balcony dinner). DH only sent one item back that was not to his liking -one table mate sent one of her pieces of salmon back as it was cold, but the best was our other two lovely table mates that really, really, wanted frozen ice cream....really frozen and they did try their best for them! Service was pretty darn good since we asked our waiter Vijeet from India -to slow down the pace so we could follow along to his words. Worked like a charm and could see he was concentrating on keeping his pace throughout the descriptions. Bernardo (or new nickname for the awesome rolls he passed out 'PUMPKIN') also did an awesome job as assistant.

 

Suite attendant Patrick not so on the ball and mentioned him in our mid-cruise survey. Received a phone call from his supervisor the next morning, relayed my concerns which she profmised to have corrected by the afternoon service. Patrick smiled and he and I cleared the initial issues right up......never an issue again and serviced our needs beautifully.

 

Captain Marek was quite friendly and took time to have a conversation with many people. He was involved in many activities , had a great sense of humor and an incredible signing voice and passion for music!

 

Steve the CD also did an awesome job along with the previosly mentioned Jennifer in specialty dining and Cristina in Chops. EVERY CREW MEMBER had a smile and good morning or good evening whenever we saw them!

 

Will we be returning to Vision soon? YES, we loved every minute of the trip...truly we did! Even the waterspout before we left the port on day 1!:D

[dancinman66]

I've never minded what I've received on vision

Sad so much of an issue now

 

 

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