Above and Beyond service which established an ongoing relationship

[xxHadleyxx]

Since on another thread a poster said they never hear stories of times when RCI bent policies to help out the customer (even though I have posted my story before, others posted stories on that thread and I have seen other such threads), I thought I would post my story in that area.

 

We booked our first cruise in RCI over Easter in 2011. Protests in Egypt had caused ships to reroute and avoid ports there, which, in turn, meant that prices dropped for cruises that suddenly found themselves with many passengers cancelling their trips. Mariner was sailing out of Barcelona over Easter (I sure wish RCI would put a ship here for in Europe for Easter again) and offered a great last minute deal for an 11 night sailing which would stop for an overnight in Instanbul to replace the previous scheduled one in Egypt.

 

We booked a cabins for our family and my in laws found some good last minute airfare over from the US and booked a cabin as well. They would be flying out in just two weeks and made the mistake of thinking with such a small window until the cruise they would be fine without buying insurance (this was, quite literally, the first time they skipped insurance--also the last time).

 

None of us had ever sailed RCI before (we had sailed Disney many times, Celebrity once, Princess a handful, etc but the only history we had with RCI was the one sailing on their sister line and that was not my in laws, just our own family).

 

The day before their flight my mother in law ended up in the hospital and they, of course, had to cancel their flights and cruise. They expected to lose all of their money and did not blame the line for that, given that they declined to buy insurance.

 

Possibly because they did not go in being demanding or asking for anything, RCI went well above and beyond in customer service that day. They asked my inlaws to obtain a note from the doctor or hospital and fax it in and then RCI issued them a credit voucher for all but $500 from the cost of their cruise. That voucher could be used on any other RCI sailing in the next year.

Wow. We were all stunned with how nice this was :)

 

 

It worked well for RCI as well. As it turns out, that Mariner cruise (which my husband and kids and I took without the in law) was by far the worst RCI cruise we have been on and ties as worst cruise ever. The food was nearly unedible. Many staff members, in many departments were surely or rude and more than one told us they hated their job or felt like they were "in prison" etc. There was only one day in which all the hot tubs were working and three in which not a single one was. It was a mess.

 

There were three things which encouraged us to give RCI another try:

 

1. We spoke to several repeated cruisers on that sailing who told us they thought it was awful as well and that this was not at all representative of the norm for RCI or even for Mariner

 

2. We were so impressed with RCI'S generosity towards my in laws

 

3. We wanted to sail with my in laws, and their budget was tied up in an RCI vouchers, so that meant sailing RCI again

 

(so 2 and 3 are both due to that little bit of unexpected, not demanded compassion on RCI's part).

 

I'm glad that was the case. That September we walked off of a Disney ship, down two terminals and onto the Liberty. fully expecting the second cruise to be much less enjoyable than the first--only to find that we had a wonderful time on Liberty and enjoyed it was much as Disney. Which, in turn, means that since summer 2011 we have sailed 8 other RCI cruises and only one other Disney ;)

Edited October 1, 2014 by NHDisneylover

[Folk Singer]

Nice story.:)

[lakelorain]

Getting to our first cruise was a nightmare due to airline labor issues. We had booked through RC so I called them. They took care of everything including fighting with the airline about our accommodations and meals. It's a long story but we were treated like we were the most important people in the world. I have never received such outstanding service. We have since taken 19 cruises with RC and have never been disappointed.

[griffy116]

The went above and beyond for us when my son-in-law was suddenly and unexpectedly deplored, several years ago. He refuses to buy insurance and we thought the full fare would be lost (we were 2 weeks from the cruise). In the end, we lost very little of the fare. They didn't have to refund any of the money. We were very grateful and we've sailed on Royal enough additional times to now be Diamond status.

[onthewater51]

Good thread OP because I'm tired of negative threads. So on to your question...

 

The first time we took our kids on a cruise was in '97, and our youngest (our son) was 10 at the time. Following dinner the first night, the waiter brought a choice of several small deserts on a plate. Our son loved a particular Italian cookie.

 

The rest of the week the waiter brought that cookie served atop a bowl of ice cream. It came prepared looking like a fancy desert with small aluminum foil animals on the side making it cute and fun for him. We never asked him to do that. That made our sons trip and he still remembers it today now age 27.

 

To my wife and I, that is one definition of customer service and was one of many things along the way that made us repeat RCCL customers.

[xxHadleyxx]

oooh, I am loving the stories -- keep them coming.

 

(so cute about the cookie--that would be the kind of thing that is super memorable for a child)

[delirious9876]

Great thread. Good to see positive stories of 'above and beyond' expected service. Thanks

 

:)

[delirious9876]

A few things that have been dealt with very well by RCI for us :-

 

- Sailed on IOS in an oceanview and there was a really loud clicking noise outside that they couldn't solve. We were upgraded to a JS for the remainder of our cruise and wine was sent to our room every day.

 

- A ruined dinner suit jacket dry cleaned onboard. We are a same sex couple so were both given hire suits with all the trimmings so we matched and the full cost of the ruined suit was credited to our stateroom account.

 

- Cancellation of our 5 day Liberty cruise. Moved to a 8 day IOS cruise for no extra cost even though the fare was a lot higher

 

- A close relative had a heart attack while we were in the middle of a TA. They gave us free unlimited use of our stateroom phone so we could stay in touch with home.

 

There are many great examples of fantastic RCI service.

 

Keep them coming :) :) :)

[delirious9876]

Strange how the threads about negative things and people having a moan (most times very justified) seem to go on and on and on . . . . .

 

However this thread about good things 'above and beyond' expectations is extremely short and inactive ! LOL :)

[jaimevoyager]

I too love this thread. I so enjoy reading RCI and CC however there seem to be so many surly people who just want to see their negativity in print these days. This summer after reading so many awful review of the Vision I was half afraid to step on board. My experience could not have been more wonderful! We chose to eat in the dining room the first evening and after that we were more casual in the WJ. The wait staff was so attentive that I told them the only thing I missed about the dining room was the small zesty rolls. Sure enough, that night and every night thereafter for 9 days, the head waiter hand delivered a small plate to us at out table. Keep the positive vibes coming!

[xxHadleyxx]

I really appreciate all of you who contributed good stories. I had a feeling there were plenty out there that we just hear less about. :)

 

Strange how the threads about negative things and people having a moan (most times very justified) seem to go on and on and on . . . . .

 

However this thread about good things 'above and beyond' expectations is extremely short and inactive ! LOL :)

 

Yep, the one issue that was the impetus for me starting this thread is still being discussed on page one, whereas this thread with at least a half dozen stories of great customer service has not been touched in nearly a week.

 

I think people are more interested in hearing bad than good--not that bad really outweighs the good. ;)

[newcastlemam]

Last year was our first cruise and we did the med on Indy one night an extremely rude lady in the schooner bar pushed her high c and a status towards the bar staff in an attempt to have us removed from the bar as our children aged 4 and 7 were with us and she was not pleased with children in the bar at 10.30 pm unfortunately her pushy attitude worked and we were asked to leave I was furious as they provide adult only bars and schooner is not one of them I went to guest services the next day and asked to speak to the activities manager as she had ran our meet and mingle and seemed approachable. I explained what had happened and she proceeded to apologise and promised to go and see the bar staff and tell them by no means were they to ask us to leave again. On top of this she met my partner and I in portofino and presented us with a bottle of champagne for our anniversary and a few bits and pieces for the children. We all really appreciated this level of service and had no problems for the rest of the sailing :) xx

 

 

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[xxHadleyxx]

Last year was our first cruise and we did the med on Indy one night an extremely rude lady in the schooner bar pushed her high c and a status towards the bar staff in an attempt to have us removed from the bar as our children aged 4 and 7 were with us and she was not pleased with children in the bar at 10.30 pm unfortunately her pushy attitude worked and we were asked to leave I was furious as they provide adult only bars and schooner is not one of them I went to guest services the next day and asked to speak to the activities manager as she had ran our meet and mingle and seemed approachable. I explained what had happened and she proceeded to apologise and promised to go and see the bar staff and tell them by no means were they to ask us to leave again. On top of this she met my partner and I in portofino and presented us with a bottle of champagne for our anniversary and a few bits and pieces for the children. We all really appreciated this level of service and had no problems for the rest of the sailing :) xx

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

Wow, that first incident should never have happened (assuming the kids and you adults were well behaved, of course ;) ) but I am so glad that when you alerted GS to the issue it was handled well and you left feeling really taken care of.

[lucymorgan]

I really appreciate all of you who contributed good stories. I had a feeling there were plenty out there that we just hear less about. :)

 

 

 

Yep, the one issue that was the impetus for me starting this thread is still being discussed on page one, whereas this thread with at least a half dozen stories of great customer service has not been touched in nearly a week.

 

I think people are more interested in hearing bad than good--not that bad really outweighs the good. ;)

 

It is lovely to hear good stories. I can see that you are satisfied because you have a good story. But the post you refer to isn't a good story. I don't think people are more interested in hearing bad than good - they would just like to see the situation resolved in the same way your situation was.

 

That would be good stories all around.

[newcastlemam]

Wow, that first incident should never have happened (assuming the kids and you adults were well behaved, of course ;) ) but I am so glad that when you alerted GS to the issue it was handled well and you left feeling really taken care of.

 

 

Yes all well behaved lol children were even sitting in their seat apparently them talking to each other was bothering the lady xx

 

 

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[candiac]

Although our family of eight always eat at late seating, because we were travelling with a 16 month old grandch9ild we were eating at earliest dining time. We thought the later seating might be for more mature guests. My daughter in law had been in post natal depression and had had a very difficult year. This was our attempt to show her a good time and help her and the baby relax. Charlotte was not good one evening and acted up in the dining room for a few minutes. A GUEST at the next table came over and asked us to take her back to her room, as clearly nothing was wrong with her she was just a BAD girl and her parents were BAD, too. My son handled it beautifully (he is an intensive care nurse and deals with difficult parents for a living) and the guest returned to her table.

 

I was very upset by the event as it ruined not only our dinner but the whole atmosphere at the table/cruise. To lighten the situation, I suggested sending a bottle of wine to her table to apologize. My table said no.

 

Just then the head waiter came over, asked what was said, as apparently the waiter had briefed him on the incident. He was very upset as Charlotte had been very good for the last week and he did not like the disruption. He suggested that we should have handled it by telling the RUDE lady to F*** O** as the staff could not do it but rude people do not deserve our respect, etc.. We laughed and it did lighten the mood.

 

But since then, I have noticed that the staff are fantastic, but some of the guests/passengers are very difficult. Although I would never tell a passenger where to go, I do smile when someone steps in line in front of me in the WJ, or is saving a row of seats for the their friends that never show in the theatre.

 

When we have trouble with rude behaviour 99 times out of 100 it is a fellow guest not a staff member.

[delirious9876]

It is lovely to hear good stories. I can see that you are satisfied because you have a good story. But the post you refer to isn't a good story. I don't think people are more interested in hearing bad than good - they would just like to see the situation resolved in the same way your situation was.

 

That would be good stories all around.

I totally appreciate your view, but my view is definitely that people are more interested in the 'gossip' 'shock' and 'catastrophising' elements of bad news stories as it titilates them, rather than good news stories.

 

:)

[xxHadleyxx]

It is lovely to hear good stories. I can see that you are satisfied because you have a good story. But the post you refer to isn't a good story. I don't think people are more interested in hearing bad than good - they would just like to see the situation resolved in the same way your situation was.

 

That would be good stories all around.

 

I disagree. the other thread is not a story of good (as in over and above) customer service, but it is not bad either (even if many on that thread paint it as such). So basically you are saying that people want to see everyone be given a break and be allowed to demand "above and beyond" service without paying for it? I think it is lovely when it happens, but turns into caving to demands and loses any niceness when it is expected and pushed for via internet campaigns, etc.

 

We absolutely did NOT expect the amazing resolution my in laws got from RCI--they cancelled fully expecting to lose all their money and would not have held it against the cruise line, started message board threads or facebook campaigns, etc calling for anything else.

[xxHadleyxx]

Although our family of eight always eat at late seating, because we were travelling with a 16 month old grandch9ild we were eating at earliest dining time. We thought the later seating might be for more mature guests. My daughter in law had been in post natal depression and had had a very difficult year. This was our attempt to show her a good time and help her and the baby relax. Charlotte was not good one evening and acted up in the dining room for a few minutes. A GUEST at the next table came over and asked us to take her back to her room, as clearly nothing was wrong with her she was just a BAD girl and her parents were BAD, too. My son handled it beautifully (he is an intensive care nurse and deals with difficult parents for a living) and the guest returned to her table.

 

I was very upset by the event as it ruined not only our dinner but the whole atmosphere at the table/cruise. To lighten the situation, I suggested sending a bottle of wine to her table to apologize. My table said no.

 

Just then the head waiter came over, asked what was said, as apparently the waiter had briefed him on the incident. He was very upset as Charlotte had been very good for the last week and he did not like the disruption. He suggested that we should have handled it by telling the RUDE lady to F*** O** as the staff could not do it but rude people do not deserve our respect, etc.. We laughed and it did lighten the mood.

 

But since then, I have noticed that the staff are fantastic, but some of the guests/passengers are very difficult. Although I would never tell a passenger where to go, I do smile when someone steps in line in front of me in the WJ, or is saving a row of seats for the their friends that never show in the theatre.

When we have trouble with rude behaviour 99 times out of 100 it is a fellow guest not a staff member.

 

So true! (luckily even those loud mouthed, rude people tend to be the vast, though visible, minority)

[Mott1086]

Great thread!

 

The wife and I were on the Majesty, for a quick three-night getaway, a few weeks ago for our two year anniversary.

 

After the server cleared our plates, the Maitre'D, head server, assistant server, and several other servers came over to our table with two Chocolate Sensation desserts, both with one candle one them, and began to sing Happy Anniversary (to the tune of happy birthday!)

 

It was incredible and we were both incredibly shocked.

 

When we got back to the cabin, we also found a bottle of champagne, resting in some water, with a note from RCCL, saying happy anniversary, thank you for spending it with us.

 

When we got home, I called and asked my travel agent if she had anything to do with it and she said she didn't.

 

Talk about a class act.

Thank you, Royal, for the WOW!

Edited October 8, 2014 by Mott1086

[lucymorgan]

I disagree. the other thread is not a story of good (as in over and above) customer service, but it is not bad either (even if many on that thread paint it as such). So basically you are saying that people want to see everyone be given a break and be allowed to demand "above and beyond" service without paying for it? I think it is lovely when it happens, but turns into caving to demands and loses any niceness when it is expected and pushed for via internet campaigns, etc.

 

We absolutely did NOT expect the amazing resolution my in laws got from RCI--they cancelled fully expecting to lose all their money and would not have held it against the cruise line, started message board threads or facebook campaigns, etc calling for anything else.

 

Without wanting to inflame this thread into negativity, it seems to me that there is an implied judgement that the OP did something wrong and didn't handle it correctly (whereas you apparently in your wisdom did handle it correctly). I don't think anyone should judge their situation or assume that they demanded rather than asked or assume that they handled it rudely as we don't have enough information. They were asking for advice.

 

I suspect we will both (hopefully) respectfully disagree.

Edited October 9, 2014 by jenibor

[Mary1951]

Oasis of the Sea I stopped every day to say hi to one of the ladies , one day she asked what we had done in port and I said my hubby bought me a ring for our 40 years marriage , she wanted to send something to my cabin and I said no . We left the room and when we got back there was wine and strawberries in our room , with note I FOUND YOU . Since I did not give her my cabin she checked all females until she found me .That was a Wow monent .