complaint letter

[Ocean Boy]

I find that when people say things like this, the tendency is to ask what went wrong. Some people are merely curious, others want to try and help. Since I wondered, and you posted about it on your Roll Call, I'm going to link to your other post because, well, it's not a private forum - it's public.

 

I'm sorry you were disappointed.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=47905772&postcount=115

 

Imagine the complaints that would have been written if RCI had decided not to go to Bermuda. We all know how tolerant people are of itinerary changes.

[Ocean Boy]

2. If you have complaints, be specific. I know the post on the roll call was not meant as a complaint letter to the company, but it was very vague. Don't say, "the shows were pretty awful." It's better to give specifics of what you thought was wrong with the shows.

 

 

I've been complaining about the shows on Indy for years. Some of them are pretty awful.:p

[Ocean Boy]

Hmmm, it appears that the folks this week may have had a smoother sailing. Apparently Liberty and Grandeur head to Canada.....

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2266599

[mlmbar]

I posted about a wonderful gesture made by a crew member on Adventure on Sept 12 sailing. I got 8 comments, most telling me how to contact RCI to praise this young woman, which I appreciated. I chose not to post about our terrible cabin steward because of the constant RCI bashing. Had I done so, I bet there would be pages of comments. Just saying

[JVilleGal]

I posted about a wonderful gesture made by a crew member on Adventure on Sept 12 sailing. I got 8 comments, most telling me how to contact RCI to praise this young woman, which I appreciated. I chose not to post about our terrible cabin steward because of the constant RCI bashing. Had I done so, I bet there would be pages of comments. Just saying

 

 

Sure hope you were able to give these employees the reports they each needed & deserved onboard. A bad cabin steward needs to be dealt with immediately! Our cabin Steward actually picked lint up off the carpet :)

[mlmbar]

Sure hope you were able to give these employees the reports they each needed & deserved onboard. A bad cabin steward needs to be dealt with immediately! Our cabin Steward actually picked lint up off the carpet :)

 

I contacted guest services and housekeeping about the steward. I wrote to RCI about the wonderful guest services employee who was exceedingly kind during a tragic situation

[wolfganghowell]

As others mentioned, the pool was most likely closed due to rough seas.

 

I am always fascinated by people complaining about weather related issues when they choose to sail during hurricane season. And yes it is a choice.

 

Spilled drink not once but twice? Yikes. Were the seas rough at the time? I feel bad for you getting dunked and for the server - God knows they don't want it to happen. As mentioned, I would have tried to get assistance asap for getting the clothes comped in the laundry. It's an inconvenience of course but is it really worthy writing a letter to corporate?

 

Sub par food and shows can easily be addressed on the post cruise survey.

[brillohead]

I'm not trying to get everyone upset, but when a server drops not one but 2 beverages on you during formal night and he doesn't care about cleaning up the mess that was made by the beverages.

 

I think there's some confusion about this -- I interpreted this to mean that two different drinks spilled at the same time (like a tray tipping over), not two different incidents of drinks being spilled.

 

I have to wonder about the "doesn't care about cleaning up the mess" part, too... It doesn't say that RCI refused to pay for laundering the soiled clothing, just that the waiter didn't care about cleaning up the mess. (I wouldn't expect the waiter to clean my clothing -- that would be laundry services -- the waiter would just clean the table area of the spill.)

 

I wonder if the OP was expecting the table to be completely cleared, a fresh tablecloth placed, and the table relaid and all tableware / drinks / dishes replaced while the party was still sitting there in the middle of their meal?

 

A rational, reasonable person would expect that any puddled/dripping liquid and ice would be wiped up, but that the stained tablecloth would remain in place until the end of the meal. Given that the OP is complaining that rough seas (in hurricane season) meant that the pools were inaccessible (duh), I think it's been established that the OP's expectations aren't rational or reasonable...

[Diplomacy]

Im not sure what your expectation is as far as some type of resolution or compensation will be coming from RC now that the cruise is over. Its best to address the concerns while still on the ship....did you do that for any of these, other than the weather, which can not be controlled by the cruise line so although the bad weather put a damper on your cruise nothing can be done about that.

 

No. Its really not. The people on the ship do not care to assist anyone with anything outside their basic duties.

 

Complaints about the food or the service will invariably fall on deaf ears. If the managers, etc cared about quality, they would address it before the food made it to your table. If someone spilled a drink on you, the manager should be at your table before the ice hits the floor. If this kind of thing does not happen, its because whomever it is who is responsible doesn't care. They won't care more after you run around the ship for 10hrs complaining to staff members from various depts.

[Merion_Mom]

No. Its really not. The people on the ship do not care to assist anyone with anything outside their basic duties.

 

Complaints about the food or the service will invariably fall on deaf ears. If the managers, etc cared about quality, they would address it before the food made it to your table. If someone spilled a drink on you, the manager should be at your table before the ice hits the floor. If this kind of thing does not happen, its because whomever it is who is responsible doesn't care. They won't care more after you run around the ship for 10hrs complaining to staff members from various depts.

 

I am very sorry if this has been your experience. Mine has been quite the opposite.

[biomedbob]

Heading for our 88th cruise next week. As for the complaint.....get over it!

[JVilleGal]

Heading for our 88th cruise next week. As for the complaint.....get over it!

 

I know a nice family in Oregon who could be adopted by you 😉

[CORKY_Q]

No. Its really not. The people on the ship do not care to assist anyone with anything outside their basic duties.

 

Complaints about the food or the service will invariably fall on deaf ears. If the managers, etc cared about quality, they would address it before the food made it to your table. If someone spilled a drink on you, the manager should be at your table before the ice hits the floor. If this kind of thing does not happen, its because whomever it is who is responsible doesn't care. They won't care more after you run around the ship for 10hrs complaining to staff members from various depts.

 

Been on a lot of RCI cruises and I will proudly state that in my experience they do care. They are not sitting on your shoulder waiting for sh*t to happen; but if it is brought to their attention, they will do everything in their power to maker it right.

[Diplomacy]

Been on a lot of RCI cruises and I will proudly state that in my experience they do care. They are not sitting on your shoulder waiting for sh*t to happen; but if it is brought to their attention, they will do everything in their power to maker it right.

 

Do they care enough to change it? or do they sit, listen and not do anything about it? I can get people to listen.

 

What I can't get is any food made with any kind of spice... except wine. They will soak literally anything in wine.

Edited October 8, 2015 by Diplomacy

[goodycruising]

I would just wait for the survey. The survey gives you plenty of room to vent and RCI takes these surveys very, very seriously.

 

It has been discussed here many times that the surveys are never answered by RCI. If the OP wants to write, I would do it as a letter as people said originally.

 

We have written on the survey a couple of times and once we asked to be contacted and never heard a thing. We wrote to the company, and as stated, they will reply in a few weeks.

 

It is my belief that the surveys are only used to group together the satisfaction numbers given in all the categories to compare sections and cruises. Maybe they are taken serious, or even very, very seriously, but that is not my understanding.

[Diplomacy]

It has been discussed here many times that the surveys are never answered by RCI. If the OP wants to write, I would do it as a letter as people said originally.

 

We have written on the survey a couple of times and once we asked to be contacted and never heard a thing. We wrote to the company, and as stated, they will reply in a few weeks.

 

It is my belief that the surveys are only used to group together the satisfaction numbers given in all the categories to compare sections and cruises. Maybe they are taken serious, or even very, very seriously, but that is not my understanding.

 

I think that they are taken seriously, if you are specific. If you have a complaint like the food was bad, well they don't care. The amount of money that they are willing to spend on spices and ingredients is a fixed amount, and they aren't going to increase their food costs by 30% unless a lot of people complain, as was the case with DD on the oasis.

 

But if you say something like "Chad in the main dining room was very rude, after he spilled a drink on me" or "Melissa, my stateroom attendant was exceptional, she personally took it upon herself to fix my dining room reservations because they were lost before the cruise" That is the sort of thing that the people in corporate will do something with. Chad/Melissa's manager, however, he won't do anything at all.

Edited October 8, 2015 by Diplomacy

[JamesEM]

Hey stuff happens, my take is, when something goes wrong contact someone in higher authority and seek a resolution to the problem, don't wait until you return home to complain.

[Big_G]

What I can't get is any food made with any kind of spice... except wine. They will soak literally anything in wine.

 

I don't believe your complaint is entirely accurate and given they are cooking for the masses, nor do I think it's realistic.

Edited October 8, 2015 by Big_G

[Starry Eyes]

On the other hand................

 

Most of the OP's complaints sound like results of hurricane avoidance. Namely, lots of rough seas affecting everyone's attitude, stomach, and ability to juggle small objects with food and drink.

 

I'm getting a picture of really cranky staff and passengers.

 

Plus, I don't blame any of them one bit.

 

I've never stopped being surprised how far to the edge of reason RCCL will push a cruise's itinerary in this situation. I'm not sure what adjustments they made to the itinerary, but it should have been as far away from the nasty stuff as possible. If it was the last hurricane, they had days and days to plan an alternative.

 

Just sayin....................

It seems easy, but it causes problems.

Let me tell you a story...

Knowing full well that it was hurricane season, a newbie friend and I booked a relatively last minute cruise out of LA. I told newbie it was storm season so itinerary could change, and not to be too attached to any port. Well, a ,pacific hurricane developed, and our itinerary was through/in the cone predicted by NOAA. Two ships sailed that day from that port. Ours, on NCL, sailed to Mexican Riviera as planned. rAin, rough seas, high winds, closed pools,missed Cabo, rained in other ports, ordered to battened down porthole cover in our "ocean view" cabin, hurricane passed pretty much right over us...scary, really, and I thought it unnecessary to take such a risk vs re-routing. my newbie friend did remarkably well. To this day I wish NCL had re-routed that ship.

 

Princess had the other ship leaving that day, scheduled for basically same itinerary. Looking at same forecast, Princess stopped in Ensenada then sailed north to California ports...cool weather, but calm and storm free. Many passengers on that ship were very angry about the new itinerary. Some got off the ship. Upon return, some of those passengers hit cruise critic arguing they should not have been re-routed, as NCL sailed (insanely in my humble opinion) to Mexico. I expressed to them on cruise critic that I felt Princess was right and NCL was wrong; they did not want to hear it, of course.

 

So my point is...it is not always easy for a cruise line to re-route,as itineraries are planned way in advance. The path and timing of storms are always in flux, and Monday morning quarterbacks will have opinions after the fact (myself included). If they do not re-route, some, like me, will be unhappy, question their judgement and harp on it for years (see harping above!). And if the cruise line does reroute, some passengers will be unhappy, and may remain so for years also.

Edited October 8, 2015 by Starry Eyes

[Starry Eyes]

Do they care enough to change it? or do they sit, listen and not do anything about it? I can get people to listen.

 

What I can't get is any food made with any kind of spice... except wine. They will soak literally anything in wine.

 

I love spicy food, too, but I do not expect spicy food on a cruise ship (or in other venues feeding large numbers of people): generally spicing is dialed way, way back to avoid offending those who really cannot handle spice. Maybe more Texans like spice, so perhaps this happens less in TX than elsewhere, but it is so in much (probably most or all) of the country...and perhaps much of the world. And the ship sails with people from all over.

 

You can talk about need for more spice, and they will listen, but as soon as they spice things up a notch, a bunch of other people are sending their plates back to the kitchen and/or complaining of over spicing...and spicing will be cut back again. If one does not like mass produced food, one should not sail on a mass market cruise or go to mass market buffets etc. I have not noted the literally everything in wine phenomenon.

[Diplomacy]

I love spicy food, too, but I do not expect spicy food on a cruise ship (or in other venues feeding large numbers of people): generally spicing is dialed way, way back to avoid offending those who really cannot handle spice. Maybe more Texans like spice, so perhaps this happens less in TX than elsewhere, but it is so in much (probably most or all) of the country...and perhaps much of the world. And the ship sails with people from all over.

 

You can talk about need for more spice, and they will listen, but as soon as they spice things up a notch, a bunch of other people are sending their plates back to the kitchen and/or complaining of over spicing...and spicing will be cut back again. If one does not like mass produced food, one should not sail on a mass market cruise or go to mass market buffets etc. I have not noted the literally everything in wine phenomenon.

 

A) its possible to make something taste good/flavorful without burning their tongues off and/or giving them a salt-induced heart attack. What I'm asking for is flavor, not habaneros in the scrambled eggs... not that I'd necessarily be opposed to that.

 

B) it absolutely is possible to cook for "the masses" good food. I'm sorry you think it isn't but it is. The "masses," love good food. Good food is about balancing flavors, not hiding from them.

 

C) Thank you for making my point for me, so let me just reiterate it now. The people in the position to "do something" about the problem will never "do something" about the problem because can't or they do not care to. Some things are the way they are, and they will not change... especially if you stay within the rank and file.

 

So why on earth would you complain to them, while onboard? You don't.

 

oh and D) it's very presumptuous of you to insinuate that your reason is the only reason for one to sail. I like a lot of things about cruising, just not the food. Why should I let a badly executed restaurant service deter me from sailing? Granted, it would be nice if the chef knew how to add black pepper to their gravy, but honestly "if you don't like the food, then don't go!"? I'm sorry if every member of your family works in an RCCL kitchen, but my lack of appreciation for mediocre food is not going to keep me from going on an adventure whenever I have the opportunity... nor is nostalgia for a 30 year old food program going to overwhelm my common sense and make me teary eyed...

Edited October 8, 2015 by Diplomacy

[Diver2014]

I'm curious as to what responses aboard the ship the OP received from Guest Services about some of their complaints.

[Sat1]

Now that you have your answers, I would suggest you sort of move on and let those who want to complain about your complaint, do so. Don't let them pull you into anything. It will make them feel better and you won't need to worry about it anymore. :) I'm just glad you got several options to go by

 

Excellent, and wise response, Sarah.

[Paul65]

Thanks for bringing that up, Sat1. I'm if the OP, who hasn't posted in a couple days, will take that advice, if he/she ever comes back. ;)

[Starry Eyes]

A) its possible to make something taste good/flavorful without burning their tongues off and/or giving them a salt-induced heart attack. What I'm asking for is flavor, not habaneros in the scrambled eggs... not that I'd necessarily be opposed to that.

 

B) it absolutely is possible to cook for "the masses" good food. I'm sorry you think it isn't but it is. The "masses," love good food. Good food is about balancing flavors, not hiding from them.

 

C) Thank you for making my point for me, so let me just reiterate it now. The people in the position to "do something" about the problem will never "do something" about the problem because can't or they do not care to. Some things are the way they are, and they will not change... especially if you stay within the rank and file.

 

So why on earth would you complain to them, while onboard? You don't.

 

oh and D) it's very presumptuous of you to insinuate that your reason is the only reason for one to sail. I like a lot of things about cruising, just not the food. Why should I let a badly executed restaurant service deter me from sailing? Granted, it would be nice if the chef knew how to add black pepper to their gravy, but honestly "if you don't like the food, then don't go!"? I'm sorry if every member of your family works in an RCCL kitchen, but my lack of appreciation for mediocre food is not going to keep me from going on an adventure whenever I have the opportunity... nor is nostalgia for a 30 year old food program going to overwhelm my common sense and make me teary eyed...

Oh, my.

Remeber the old adage about flies, honey, and vinegar.

Phrasing things so aggressively tends to backfire.

hOpe you feel better, though, after all that venting and accusing.