Is RCI's "refund" for the Oasis "Tragedy at Sea" Appropriate?

[NemoCrownie]

Are we reading the same note? The one orignally posted?

 

I saw an apology- one for an instance that they actually had no control over, and another where they admitted that the work in dry dock was not done. How is that not acknowedging a problem or how is that blaming someone else? If they are blaming someone else, my English must be bad, as I don't see who they are blaming.

 

The note also specifically mentioned that they want the cruise experience to be good.

 

And they do offer a pretty good discount- it's not 20% off a next cruise, it's a value of 20% of the cuise that was just taken. So if you spend $3000 for one person, you will get a $600 voucher for a cruise- which would pay for a cruise on many ships/itineraries.

 

Basically, I'm trying to figure out why the letter is bad. Seems that they apoligized for not being more prepared for disembarking and then added an apology for the dry dock work not being finished and that people were inconvienenced by that.

 

What am I missing that it's a bad or insulting note?

 

The value of the compensation- it probably would be fine for us. But, OP, that's totally up to you.

 

I see what you are saying and it may be how I am interpreting the letter but the way I read it, they are apologizing for issues out of their control but fail to acknowledge the issues that they could control. Having read the reviews, the issues in the letter were discussed but they weren't the real problem. The weather sounds like it was awful but, again, the reviewers all seemed to acknowledge that and accepted it for what it was. I wouldn't classify any of the reviewers as whiny or complainers by nature, in fact most didn't dwell on the negative but all of them had numerous issues that weren't just isolated incidents.

Edited November 7, 2014 by NemoCrownie

[chloe kitty]

I'm with you as far as being a fan but they only realized they "dropped" the ball because of the customer surveys and the letters of complaint they received. They didn't figure it out on their own. I don't believe they would have made the decision to offer this discount had they only received a "few" bad surveys or a handful of complaint letters.

 

Also I have been on 40 cruises and have never seen this kind of embarkation and debarkation. The lack of communication was unbelievable. We had no idea we were going to have to debark and go through immigration in Southampton. We didn't get the letter. So when we did get off we expected to be able to get right back on and were not prepared to wait in a mob for two hours. (and I am not an angry American and I never raised my voice.) If you weren't there you can't imagine it. For those who experienced no issues I am happy for you but that doesn't mean issues didn't exist for the rest of us. This is the only one of our 30 RCI cruises that we didn't give excellent across the board ratings on the survey and as has been stated many times it was mostly due to the attitude of the staff.

 

We were also on this cruise. I agree with most of what is said above. We have been on 38 cruises and have never experienced anything like this. We were on a transpacific cruise that had icicles hanging from the handrails, obviously colder than this cruise. The CD had a contingency plan. He opened the theater for movies during the daytime hours. He scheduled other events. Weather did not have to be a problem! Yes, they were rehearsing in the theater, but a two hour period for a movie each day could have been arranged. People need to do their job. We enjoyed that cruise. It seems that RCCL just wanted to collect $12 for each movie we watched on TV. CS was sorely lacking. If you asked a question, you most likely would get the wrong answer, and this is after waiting in a long line. We always try to look at the bright side of things, and did in this case too. The entertainment was great. The food was pretty good. The waiters were very good.

I realize that many RCCL loyal people would not find anything wrong no matter what, but RCCL really dropped the ball on this one, and in our opinion did not own up to it.

As someone mentioned, the passengers on the current Quantum cruise are receiving a 25% future cruise credit, and $300 OBC. Those of you who were not on this cruise cannot fully understand the problems that occurred.

Edited November 7, 2014 by chloe kitty

[PhoenixDawgCruising]

I'm shocked because I am FB friends with someone who was on this sailing, and she posted pics and posts throughout the cruise, and she had a great time. Sure the weather wasn't super sunny, but this is a TA cruise from the UK, it isn't a Caribbean cruise in the spring.:eek:

 

And she did mention the weather cleared for the last few days.

 

She liked it so well she booked another one on board.

 

I think a few greedy types are trying to get paid for nothing.

 

They should have listened to "Miss Jackson" by Outkast: "You can plan a pretty picnic but you can't predict the weather".;)

 

Besides, I've been on Oasis, in the rain, there was plenty do see and do.

 

I call Shenanigans!

[AlexanderBeetle]

I don't get that impression from OP at all. I think you are really reaching and making accusations that are baseless.

 

I agree with this. If you read their live review it's not only enjoyable, but I got a sense that they were really trying to look past the negatives.

 

I do think the cruise credit is fair. The apology seems like it could have been written a little better. Of course, that's just my opinion and it's all subjective.

[tanzer22pilot]

According to the German Cruise Critic site the following were on board:

 

40 Pinnacle

811 Diamond Plus

1076 Diamond

402 Emerald

737 Platinum

921 Gold

 

Now I am sure that this is not normal for any cruise, but out 5199 passenger (not sure if extra workman are in this number) are considering them themselves special (76%) in a crowd. Add to the fact that RCI has in the past bent over hand and foot for them, they did not this time.

 

Having almost two thousand diamond and above charge the entrance doors of the concierge lounge every night was a sight to see all to get a free drink (or three). RCI was clearly overwhelmed by the C+A crowd.

 

Now, as always, the individuals in the crowd are not the problem, but as the numbers of "off-limit" to those of use in steerage grew, this trip began to get less and less fun.

 

But then again, the bathrooms were kept clean.

 

 

Edit. The above photo is a <joke> as the only people not onboard that were in the upper C+A group were the children and us. Repeat it is a <joke>.

Edited November 7, 2014 by tanzer22pilot

[CruiseMore1]

I would be a little offended with this response. Again, just my opinion, but they are not taking ownership for all of the problems that were of their own doing. I would expect a more forthright response to the effect of "we really dropped the ball and offer our sincerest apologies for the issues encountered by our valued customers...we want to learn from this experience and we are reviewing all of our customer feedback so that we can address the concerns that are within our control..."

 

I honestly don't know how compensation for all the issues faced should be handled, given the varying cruise fares paid, but I would be more satisfied with at least a 25% immediate credit issued to each passenger. That might make me think it was a one-time occurrence and make me willing to give them another chance. I don't think providing credit towards a future booking shows any accountability for the problems. Since I have no loyalty to any business, I would be less inclined to give them another dime of my money - I am known to cut off my nose to spite my face - and chalk it up to lesson learned. Again, this response would not make me happy but others may think differently and that is fine.

 

Have to totally agree with you! This was just another response that was basically "so sorry, but not our fault." They have not owned up to any responsibility on their part. There were so many problems and they made no attempt to handle them as is to be expected from a quality company. And no, it was not due to the weather either! My first reaction to their email was it is just another slap in the face!

[CruiseMore1]

I know several people that were on this cruise and they said it wasn't near as bad as what people have posted here. Yes, it was crowded since the weather prevented people from going outside, but they said the worst part of the cruise was listening to all the whiners and complainers-- most of whom were D and above. I think the future discount offer is more than fair IMHO.

 

Ah, but you weren't there! Guess all your friends must be Pinnacles.

[SA Traveler]

I'm shocked because I am FB friends with someone who was on this sailing, and she posted pics and posts throughout the cruise, and she had a great time. Sure the weather wasn't super sunny, but this is a TA cruise from the UK, it isn't a Caribbean cruise in the spring.:eek:

 

And she did mention the weather cleared for the last few days.

 

She liked it so well she booked another one on board.

 

I think a few greedy types are trying to get paid for nothing.

 

They should have listened to "Miss Jackson" by Outkast: "You can plan a pretty picnic but you can't predict the weather".;)

 

Besides, I've been on Oasis, in the rain, there was plenty do see and do.

 

I call Shenanigans!

 

If you had read all the posts about this cruise you would know that the weather was the least of it for most of us. For me it was a non issue. I didn't complain other than in the ratings on my survey and I didn't expect any kind of compensation. I was disappointed in the attitudes of the staff and the way they responded or did not respond to issues.

 

When I read that there was immediate compensation on the Quantum just for embarkation issues and we knew we had those times two and knew our debarkation was a fiasco then yes at that point for me I thought some compensation was in order. I apologize for the run on sentence.

 

Like I said before if it can be used without all kinds of restrictions then I think it is fair.

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Forums mobile app

[CruiseMore1]

The passengers should not have gotten anything. RCCL did not screw up, it was the weather which nobody has control over, thats part of cruising/being on a boat.

 

If I take guests out on my boat in the Chesapeake Bay and the weather turns bad and were in 3-5 foot seas, and they have a problem with it, maybe they can ask mother nature for an apology or compensation.

 

Get over it, life happens, stop your whinning and grow a pair...

 

Oh, that's right - you weren't there either!

[cpj]

I think from this thread that's it is not advisable to go on a cruise one week before or one week after a dry dock. This is not the first time that this has happened.

[tanzer22pilot]

I'm shocked because I am FB friends with someone who was on this sailing, and she posted pics and posts throughout the cruise, and she had a great time. Sure the weather wasn't super sunny, but this is a TA cruise from the UK, it isn't a Caribbean cruise in the spring.:eek:

 

And she did mention the weather cleared for the last few days.

 

She liked it so well she booked another one on board.

 

I think a few greedy types are trying to get paid for nothing.

 

They should have listened to "Miss Jackson" by Outkast: "You can plan a pretty picnic but you can't predict the weather".;)

 

Besides, I've been on Oasis, in the rain, there was plenty do see and do.

 

I call Shenanigans!

 

 

Call Shenanigans if you want, but the only thing in common to everyone on this thread that is on RCI side, is that they were not onboard this cruise.

 

Most would have been happy with a good, "We know there are problems and are working on it." letter.

 

It should almost be a requirement to on these kinds of threads to have to indicated whether they were onboard or not the cruise.

[CruiseMore1]

Since apparently there are people who have not read about (or experienced) what took place on this voyage, let me mention a couple of the biggest issues we faced.

 

1. The biggest problem by far was the lack of service and attitude of the staff. In any business things go wrong. How you deal with them is what makes the difference in a service oriented business. When the embarkation problems in Rotterdam and then Southampton occurred, there were NO RCI to be seen anywhere. When lines occurred for events during the cruise, it was the same and finally when we disembarked in Fort Lauderdale and the situation was even worse, the staff was still in "hiding". Any attempt to discuss the problems with "Guest NON-relations" was met with defensive replies.

 

2. Construction in progress - RCI did not allow sufficient time in dry dock to complete their renovations. So not only were there several venues closed (which added to the overcrowding), but there jackhammers being used, the smell of paint in many parts of the ship. Personally we experienced an even more blatant example as they decided to shampoo our carpet while the cruise was still in progress. All of this occurred without any notification to the passengers or even to their travel agents (as I am one).

 

Of course there were more, but I truly do not want to rehash them here as there were also lots of things that I liked about the ship. You can read them in my "live" thread. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2114373

 

That was not the purpose of my original question.

 

What I was asking is whether you believe the 20% credit toward a future cruise was an appropriate response. What would you do if your company did not perform as you hoped it would and your customers did not receive the benefits from your product that you hope they would.

 

Here is what Ellie suggested:

 

1. First acknowledge your mistakes. Don't try to whitewash them and blame the problems on everyone else.

 

2. Offer compensation for what took place. Remember the size of the company we are talking about, the amount they spend on advertising and the goodwill that could be created.

 

3. Offer a discount on a future cruise.

 

What do you think? Is that too much to expect?

 

Interesting, isn't it, to see how different the responses to your question are? If one wasn't onboard for the cruise, or if they were Pinnacles or suite guests, they didn't really see the problems. Guess I would have to agree that the cruise wasn't tragic; however, it was chaotic. And upper management/officers simple didn't care!

[roysmith99]

I always regret commenting but just have to do so.

 

1. Did anyone really expect Royal Caribbean to have all the work completed on time - they certainly would not have done so.

 

2. It must have been very difficult for those people who did not enjoy their Cruise because of the problems, I empathise, having suffered several similar issues and I feel for each one who did not enjoy the experience.

 

3. The terms and conditions of the cruise are very clear.... You pay your money and take your chances.

 

4. Where is the "tragedy" - did someone die and we have all missed it?

 

5. With all of the thousands of loyal C & A guests rushing to the private lounges each night the rest dk the ship must have been a haven for those wanting a quiet drink.

 

.

 

Please feel free to criticise me for my comments...

Edited November 7, 2014 by roysmith99

[tanzer22pilot]

I always regret commenting but just have to do so.

 

1. Did anyone really expect Royal Caribbean to have all the work completed on time - they certainly would not have done so.

 

2. It must have been very difficult for those people who did not enjoy their Cruise because of the problems, I empathise, having suffered several similar issues and I feel for each one who did not enjoy the experience.

 

3. The terms and conditions of the cruise are very clear.... You pay your money and take your chances.

 

4. Where is the "tragedy" - did someone die and we have all missed it?

 

.

 

Please feel free to criticise me for my comments...

 

 

Yes, the work should have be done.

 

Yes, there was one major injury onboard and one death. Guess that checkmarks that box in your mind.

 

Then again, you were not onboard THIS cruise.

[Freedom2014]

I received 20 percent off my total cruise fair and 15 percent off a future cruise on my last 2 carnival cruises because my aircon didn't work! I didn't even ask for it they just wrote me a letter the next day of cruise and the 15 percent future cruise credit was available that day...why do you have to wait 6 weeks? lol

[Canadian Tyler]

Probably because there's over 5000 passengers to credit in this scenario (I'm assuming it's everyone on board and not just those who wrote/called to complain).

 

I wasn't on the cruise but in my opinion they weren't obligated t provide any refund/credit so I'd be a happy camper....er cruiser.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Edited November 7, 2014 by Canadian Tyler

[artbcpa]

WOW!! Over 3,000 views and 68 posts in just a couple of hours. IMHO, this is exactly what Cruise Critic and the other review sites are about. People can read opinions about how a company handles negative issues and the types of customers they serve and make a more informed decision of whether this is the product or service they wish to purchase.

 

When I work with clients on their customer service issues, some are very defensive and never want to see their customers point of view. Others can be oblivious to the short term costs involved hoping for the long term loyalty it can generate. Both have their costs. I often ask them if there is a middle ground between Spirit Air and Nordstrom?

 

With a very few exceptions, people are giving reasoned opinions of why they believe RCI acted in good faith or not. (There always will be those few who are more interested in making outlandish accusations then helping out others - take Nancy Grace or jp30338 for instance).

 

I believe we have put just about all of the issues on the table and hopefully this thread will be of some service to future passengers in deciding whether or not RCI is the right cruise line for them.

Edited November 7, 2014 by artbcpa

[rtazz17]

We just received the following e-mail from RCI. With all that went wrong (see various threads), we would like to ask our fellow cruise critic friends if this is what you would do if you owned a company that screwed up and wanted to encourage their customers (passengers) to try your product again.

 

Dear Valued Guest:

 

We understand how much our guests look forward to and invest in their vacation. I am so sorry there was some disappointed on your Oasis of the Seas cruise and we hope to regain your trust.

 

We never want our guests to go through any kind of difficulties during their time with us and we recognize how frustrating it must have been for you to encounter delays due to the additional mandatory customs inspections. We are sorry our efforts fell short and would like to apologize for the disappointment with the service provided.

 

Additionally, as part of our commitment to provide our guests with the best vacation facilities, we added several improvements to the Oasis of the Seas during her refurbishment. However, with so many changes being completed in a short span of time, there were unforeseen complications that arose. We apologize for any inconvenience these enhancements may have caused you.

 

To thank you for your understanding, we would like to provide you with a special discount for use on a future Royal Caribbean International sailing. The discount value will be 20% of the cruise fare paid for this sailing. You should receive your certificate in approximately 6 weeks. Please be guided by the offer instructions on the certificate when finalizing plans for your next cruise vacation.

 

Again, thank you for choosing to sail with Royal Caribbean International. We look forward to welcoming you back again in the not too distant future.

 

Sincerely,

 

Lisa Lutoff-Perlo

Executive Vice President, Operations, Royal Caribbean International

 

Ok,this is very very far from a tragedy.Come on,a tragedy?A disappointment yes but not a tragedy.

You wont like my response and yes ive read all about it.

I believe what response and offer you received was fair.

Right after drydock on any ship that had some pretty significant changes you can never expect everything to be up and running.No way....Had weather been 80 and sunny all ten days or whatever this wouldve been very different for sure.

 

Unrelated but if I ever book a transatlantic cruise I know it might be very cool and very rainy and choppy seas.This is a very tough to predict weather scenario in the atlantic and you must consider being couped up inside with several hundread or thousand other guests.These huge ships are not meant to be cruised on in cold weather.They are set up to basically cruise warm weather ports.You mustve known this when you booked.Its quite obvious.Staff is not used to or prepared to deal with everyone inside for most of a cruise.

Edited November 7, 2014 by rtazz17

[michtrif]

When I saw the words "Tragedy at Sea" I thought someone had died and then wondered why Royal Caribbean would be offering refunds. Being "stuck" on a ship with ongoing construction, closed venues, crowding, bad weather, etc. hardly merits a tragedy.

 

You should check with some folks who have experienced a real tragedy. :rolleyes:

 

I was thinking the same thing... I was trying to fins a post that read someone died or there was an accident.

I was on Explorer last month and we were informed we were rerouted to Canada less than 12 hours before. There were people who didn't even KNOW until boarding. There were people who FLEW from CANADA only to cruise back to Canada. It wasn't fair. The weather was horrid- cold, windy and wet for all but one day. We stood in LONG lines to get off the boat in Canada (ebola questioning) some of the staff was disgruntled. The only time we saw the pool deck was in passing to go to the gym. We didn't go outside at all. Bars had to be closed in port bc of Canadian drinking laws, which meant we could only drink at certain bars while in port. People complained, most joked. We got over it. It was hardly a tragedy. It was still a vacation.

RC gave us cabin credit or offered us 25% on a future cruise if we chose not to sail. I DO feel the compensation could have been better- considering Canada in a NorEsater is NOT even close to Bermuda, but it was hardly a tragedy. No one complained once we got home. (not to my knowledge- I didn't see a single post here, besides my own)

 

It really sucks for those who were inconvenienced by a crappy sailing on (one of) the Biggest ships in the world. I get it because I felt the same way about my cruise last month. But calling it a tragedy is a real First World Problem, don't you think?

[CruiseMore1]

call shenanigans if you want, but the only thing in common to everyone on this thread that is on rci side, is that they were not onboard this cruise.

 

Most would have been happy with a good, "we know there are problems and are working on it." letter.

 

It should almost be a requirement to on these kinds of threads to have to indicated whether they were onboard or not the cruise.

 

amen!

[Oville]

Interesting, isn't it, to see how different the responses to your question are? If one wasn't onboard for the cruise, or if they were Pinnacles or suite guests, they didn't really see the problems. Guess I would have to agree that the cruise wasn't tragic; however, it was chaotic. And upper management/officers simple didn't care!

 

Except the OP was in a suite and he clearly saw problems.

[Artemis]

Yes, there was one major injury onboard and one death.

 

 

Could you elaborate?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

[nomis04]

We were on the sailing and had a great time. Sure, there were some problems with embarkation and disembarkation but onboard, we had a wonderful time. True the weather sucked and sent most everyone inside which crowded the venues not designed for that many people - but hey, we were on a cruise. We always found space along the Promenade for four of us to play cards and have a drink, saw the shows we wanted to without waiting in lines. Who wouldn't have thought there would be long lines for the first showing of Cats? We went the second day with no reservation and no line. Go figure. Same for shows that were cancelled due to weather, of course the next showing will be more crowded, it's just logical and same happens on the seven day sailings.

We got a kick out of watching the masses lining up 30 minutes early for the Diamond and above lounges to open, or for traditional dinino times - like somehow they wouldn't get in. Went to the lounges around 6 or 7, no problem getting a drink, but trying to find a seat -not gonna happen. People went in at 5 and camped out for the entire time. As we're not into that, we just got a drink and small snack, and took off. We're not big on camping out in a lounge for 3.5 hours to get our drink on for "free", lots of lounges and bars around the ship, and shows to see (with no lines) during that time. Again, go figure.

Truly didn't find any venues actually closed that had any affect over a regular cruise except Viking Crown, which was rarely used on a regular sailing anyways (in five Oasis sailings before, we've been in there total of 3 times, no loss to us). Sure, theater was closed for rehearsals, but not much happens in there normally. Izumi was closed, but as it used to be part of Windjammer, that actually gave more public space in Windjammer and had no affect as it took part of the dining room which wasn't open normally anyways. Those with access to Co clergy lounge still had the option, etc.

We simply had a great time. Would uave been betterm if the weather had been better. Certainly did not expect any kind of compensation for what was, for us, a good cruise. This is more than generous in our opinion. I understand some people had hot water probkems or TV problems , but we didn't at all, and the crowds were a non-issue, except having to hear people complaining left and right about them (not sure exactly what RCI was supposed to do about that). Overall, more than fair in our opinion.

And I certainly would not refer to this cruise as "Tragedy of the Seas". That is quite extreme for a cruise that sailed fine, didn't capsize or have major deaths onboard, etc. Cool weather is not a tragedy.

 

My wife and I are in total accord with what was said in this post and here's why:

 

We experienced the Embark and Disembark difficulties, some frowning and even some unfriendly staff, many frowning and unhappy cruisers, a few long lines, a Promenade and Diamond lounge that was always under heavy traffic and cold weather with high seas that reduced "people space". We even had a minor confrontation with a "grumpy" staffer (I would say we were having a "grumpy" moment as well)...however..

 

We also experienced the following:

 

What turned out to be one of the best times we ever had as we waited to disembark by making some new friends who shared the moments of cold, damp long lines with wit and social commentary on it all. We "Horsed" around like wild "Panthers" and "Tigers" waiting to be set free to journey thru a very "hands on" Southampton Customs Inspector and into the "wild" of the just refurbished, yet unfinished "Oasis Westbound TA".

 

We spent 12 great days doing the things we could do, tolerating the things that annoyed us, and when we felt like bitching, we did that too. Still, each and every day we had had a great time when it ended. We saw many shows including the first ever CATS production on board , and even though the line was a totally obnoxious clusterball with no staff to control..it was special.. very special..

 

While our visits to the C+A Diamond Lounge were always greeted with full rooms of what appeared to be, thirsty and energized, experienced cruisers, we got most of our "perked" refreshments at our favorite outside establishments where we always had fun conversation and met friendly staff who served us well..

 

While the Promenade seemed to be always filled, we never once had trouble finding a place to sit, have a few drinks and play cards with our friends we had met outside @ Southampton. As a side note, they are the first couple we have met on any cruise or in our travels over the past 40some years who played the same game we play....and they were good at it too..

 

We ate at 150, a night we will all remember, we danced in ways we haven't danced in many many years thanks to the energy of our new friends.. We drank, sang, partied, ate too much, rested a lot in between and never let the frustrations of others or ourselves stop us from having a complete cruise adventure.. a different adventure than the Eastbound, but no less memorable and exciting..

 

We never felt unsafe or forced to do anything we couldn't say no to...

 

For us, it was a cruise we will always remember with positive memories and we will tell the stories of what went wrong and what went right with humor and smiles.. A cruise that lets us say, "remember when we..." with a grin is success in our minds and the OASIS Westbound still puts a smile on our face.

 

So, do WE think RCL owes us any money back, or a credit or a voucher or any other type remuneration.. The answer is ..NO...but we will gladly accept it as they obviously believe that they should do something and we would not want to insult them by not accepting there "goodwill" gesture... We will gladly put it towards The Allure Westbound TA next year and hope that it too will also deliver some positive lasting memories...

[Freedom2014]

R.I.P to all who died...wait...no one died...wait you had to sit inside in of the lounges or cafes because it was raining?

[tanzer22pilot]

R.I.P to all who died...wait...no one died...wait you had to sit inside in of the lounges or cafes because it was raining?

 

One lady fell down the stair at the Aqua theater and ended up with a major head injury. A few days later there was an Alpha call and it was our understanding that someone passed away.

 

Once again, you can tell who was onboard this cruise and who was not.