Just off Anthem and cancelled my other 3 cruises on her

[tiggypooo]

I wasn't planning on making a scene during this trip.

I've discussed the problems to death during the last 3 days and really don't think that me as 1 person, can or should have to upset myself or my family further.

The problem is too big......

 

I know that Royal monitors this board so they should be getting the message.

At the Spectra Cabaret show tonight (which was fabulous) there was a couple discussing why the food was so bad in the complimentary restaurants.

I mean come on. Everywhere I go, the comments are the same.

Their take on the whole thing was that there was a distance between the kitchens and the dining rooms which delayed the servers.

 

Our saving grace is that we're in a suite and so I was able to switch the rest of our dinners to Costal Kitchen.

We ate there tonight and it was very good.

Imagine that. The food was served hot. What a concept.

[denatravels]

I wasn't planning on making a scene during this trip.

 

I've discussed the problems to death during the last 3 days and really don't think that me as 1 person, can or should have to upset myself or my family further.

 

The problem is too big......

 

 

 

I know that Royal monitors this board so they should be getting the message.

 

 

 

You are on the ship-- they should be "getting the message" because you should speak to the hotel director. I'm not suggesting that you should continue to get upset about this, but posting here is somewhat like screaming into the wind. Yes, they monitor it, but you will have much more effective (and less stressful) results by speaking to the senior officer in board.

[Biker19]

We all pay more to sail with Royal, because of the higher quality of a "Family style" ship.

If I want poor food and service, there are less expensive lines to sail with.

I and we all, should expect a certain level of quality from Royal and especially on a brand new ship.

 

I'm pretty disgusted that they haven't fixed it by now and my very expensive cruise vacation, has been negatively affected.

Ah, there it is - so if the price were lower you'd be fine with the service. Guess what, the price will come down and people will see value at a certain price point. You don't at your paid price point and that's very fair argument.

[Cruise a holic]

The cruise problems have nothing to do with money spent. For example the "wonderful" NorthStar line was around one hour and 45 minutes on the Quantum. That is unacceptable. The promenade on the Quantum and Anthem are much smaller then the Allure and Oasis- so the parade and other functions were like walmart on black Friday as was the pool and buffet. We had to leave the buffet many times as no seats were available. Fortunately we were in a suite and had a dedicated restaurant. While the menu was boring- at least we received service and had a seat. The other restaurants, including the specialty restaurants, were poor to fair-

 

I didn't believe the negative reviews which were 46% positive- but after the experience now believe them. People shouldn't take opinions and experience as a personal attack. We are trying to share our experiences and help other cruise passengers make informed decisions.

[tiggypooo]

You know what, people on this board just love to diss posters if they can twist their words at all.

Biker, no I would not be happy if I paid less.

Maybe I wouldn't cruise at all.

and Dena, the problem is bigger than just one little thing that I can go and complain about.

It's not just me whining.

Mr. Bill gets it.

[MisterBill99]

The cruise problems have nothing to do with money spent. For example the "wonderful" NorthStar line was around one hour and 45 minutes on the Quantum. That is unacceptable.

Well, in theory they're trying to address that by letting you pre-book the NS before leaving. Of course, my cruise is 5 weeks from Sunday and it's still not available for booking. And the iFly one minute flight has been on the website for over a month. But when you try to book it, it doesn't show any available times (and has been that way since the day it showed up, so it's highly unlikely that it sold out).

[denatravels]

You know what, people on this board just love to diss posters if they can twist their words at all.

 

Biker, no I would not be happy if I paid less.

 

Maybe I wouldn't cruise at all.

 

and Dena, the problem is bigger than just one little thing that I can go and complain about.

 

It's not just me whining.

 

Mr. Bill gets it.

 

 

You think I don't get it??? I just said that it's better to actually do something about it-- if you think that it's too big to complain to the hotel director, and prefer to complain on cruise critic, then I don't think YOU get it: these problems cannot be addressed by the people here-- you are more than welcome to complain about them, though. That wasn't what bothered me. I'm happy to hear about all mixed reviews. I just think that you have an opportunity to really get them addressed NOW (both for you and future cruisers) and that does not seem to interest you.

[MisterBill99]

Ah, there it is - so if the price were lower you'd be fine with the service. Guess what, the price will come down and people will see value at a certain price point. You don't at your paid price point and that's very fair argument.

Not at all true. I was originally paying $2000pp for my upcoming cruise. Thanks to many price drops since September, I'm now paying $2700 for two of us. It won't make me any less forgiving if the food is terrible.

 

Maybe I'm being naive, but better and more interesting food than the normal MDR setup is one of the attractions of Anthem. And I don't just mean at the specialty restaurants.

 

I can live with some level of bad service so long as it doesn't cause me to miss shows that I've booked or cause the food to show up cold.

 

Also, in my case, i have 9 more days booked later in the year on a route we've never done before (Canada/NE). It would suck to have a bad experience on this cruise and then not necessarily look forward to the next one, since we really do not want to cancel that one.

Edited December 3, 2015 by MisterBill99

[MisterBill99]

You think I don't get it??? I just said that it's better to actually do something about it-- if you think that it's too big to complain to the hotel director, and prefer to complain on cruise critic, then I don't think YOU get it: these problems cannot be addressed by the people here-- you are more than welcome to complain about them, though. That wasn't what bothered me. I'm happy to hear about all mixed reviews. I just think that you have an opportunity to really get them addressed NOW (both for you and future cruisers) and that does not seem to interest you.

 

I agree. And if these problems exist when I'm on the ship, I fully intend to take advantage of my access to the senior officers at either the C&A party for "senior" members or at the Cruise Critic M&M (if they show up) to let them know and discuss it with them. Heck, on my last Celebrity Summit cruise I ended up with the executive chef for the galley tour and had no qualms about discussing issues with him and I got results on two. You have to take advantage of whatever access you have to let the appropriate people know about issues. Hopefully they will appreciate your letting them know, although in this case it is probably a bigger problem than just one person can fix, and certainly not immediately (that may be what tiggypooo was referring to).

Edited December 3, 2015 by MisterBill99

[CruisingChick]

Well, in theory they're trying to address that by letting you pre-book the NS before leaving. Of course, my cruise is 5 weeks from Sunday and it's still not available for booking. And the iFly one minute flight has been on the website for over a month. But when you try to book it, it doesn't show any available times (and has been that way since the day it showed up, so it's highly unlikely that it sold out).

 

Our cruise is 3 months away. I keep checking every day but I am encountering the same things you are.

[Dave85]

Our cruise is 3 months away. I keep checking every day but I am encountering the same things you are.

 

 

NS reservations didn't open until about two weeks out for my Anthem sailing if memory serves me, FYI. Not sure if it opened any later for subsequent sailings.

[MisterBill99]

NS reservations didn't open until about two weeks out for my Anthem sailing if memory serves me, FYI. Not sure if it opened any later for subsequent sailings.

I had hoped that the 2 week window for your cruise was because it was something they had just started doing. It's not looking like it, at least for my cruise 5 weeks out.

Edited December 3, 2015 by MisterBill99

[Je2ter]

 

We have a cruise booked for March 7th and now wondering if I should cancel. We have 3 weeks before final payment is due..

 

 

Cruisechick, people love to complain! You cannot let someone else's opinion sway you from going on a vacation. The ship has gotten very mixed reviews. Some LOVE it and some HATE it. So what. Your vacation is what YOU make of it. I am booked for the march 19th sailing and I am soooo excited!!! I Love to read all of these reviews..good and bad just to learn a little of the ins and outs and what people liked or didn't like. That post was the OPs opinion and I respect their opinion because those were things that mattered to THEM.

But I would never let someone's opinion make me cancel my cruise!! Lmao no way.

The things some people cared about I probably wouldn't have given a second thought about. If they're complaining about food..maybe they are complaining about something you don't even eat!!? I don't eat meat so most food complained don't even apply to me.

Give the workers a break..they work 6 month contracts leaning their family's behind and NEVER get a day off. Ever. Not even one day a week. They also work around the clock. The same server you see in the windjammer at 7am breakfast is later handing you bread and water at 9pm dinner.

 

March 19th cannot come fast enough!!!!!

[MisterBill99]

Give the workers a break..they work 6 month contracts leaning their family's behind and NEVER get a day off. Ever. Not even one day a week. They also work around the clock. The same server you see in the windjammer at 7am breakfast is later handing you bread and water at 9pm dinner.

They do that on ships where people don't have problems with the service as well. Let's not use it as an excuse for poor service. I don't think anyone is blaming the employees. It's either lack of training, or lack of staff or poor management that is causing the problems that people are talking about.

[dani negreanu]

It seems to me that these dining room issues are fairly new. I don't recall reading this many (and certainly not this level) of complaints when she was sailing out of the UK. In another thread multiple people have said that they had dinner at the WJ (something they would never normally do), and that it was better than some of the free venues.

 

After trying everyone of the "free" venues once, we decided to give WJ a try and never "looked back" ... (on a 13 nights cruise)...

Don't get me wrong: I like dressing up for dinner, having all the fuss and napkins, sitting at a nice table, BUT don't like spending 2 hours of my vacation on poor food. At least the WJ had a nice variety of food, and I could choose some favorites every night. It was also quieter and not waiters rushing madly around you.

[Biker19]

I fully intend to take advantage of my access to the senior officers at either the C&A party for "senior" members or at the Cruise Critic M&M (if they show up) to let them know and discuss it with them.

 

Cornering them after the Captain's Corner works as well.;)

[ISABELLA]

I agree. And if these problems exist when I'm on the ship, I fully intend to take advantage of my access to the senior officers at either the C&A party for "senior" members or at the Cruise Critic M&M (if they show up) to let them know and discuss it with them. Heck, on my last Celebrity Summit cruise I ended up with the executive chef for the galley tour and had no qualms about discussing issues with him and I got results on two. You have to take advantage of whatever access you have to let the appropriate people know about issues. Hopefully they will appreciate your letting them know, although in this case it is probably a bigger problem than just one person can fix, and certainly not immediately (that may be what tiggypooo was referring to).

 

Would you think after so many bad comments regarding food and service higher ups already aware of all problems, and if they are not - they are not doing their job and if they do and not making any changes to improve - they are not doing their job. Only time will tell.

[trogmd]

Cruisechick, people love to complain! You cannot let someone else's opinion sway you from going on a vacation. The ship has gotten very mixed reviews. Some LOVE it and some HATE it. So what. Your vacation is what YOU make of it. I am booked for the march 19th sailing and I am soooo excited!!! I Love to read all of these reviews..good and bad just to learn a little of the ins and outs and what people liked or didn't like. That post was the OPs opinion and I respect their opinion because those were things that mattered to THEM.

But I would never let someone's opinion make me cancel my cruise!! Lmao no way.

The things some people cared about I probably wouldn't have given a second thought about. If they're complaining about food..maybe they are complaining about something you don't even eat!!? I don't eat meat so most food complained don't even apply to me.

Give the workers a break..they work 6 month contracts leaning their family's behind and NEVER get a day off. Ever. Not even one day a week. They also work around the clock. The same server you see in the windjammer at 7am breakfast is later handing you bread and water at 9pm dinner.

 

March 19th cannot come fast enough!!!!!

 

 

Hi Je2ter,

Completely agree with every word in your post.

You have nothing to worry about and every reason to be excited!!!!

 

We were on Anthem just before the ship crossed the pond. While everything was not perfect this was one of the best cruises we have ever had.

WE DID NOT EXPERIENCE ANY OF THE PROBLEMS THAT PEOPLE ON CC ARE COMPLAINING ABOUT!!!!!! It is as though they were on a completely different ship.

I am not saying that people are making a mountain out of a molehill but as you say "The things some people cared about I probably wouldn't have given a second thought about."

Chatting to the staff on the ship, a lot of them said that they were at the end of their contract and that they would not be on Anthem when she gets to America. We did notice a lot of staff training taking place as well.

We found the food to be extremely delicious and the service was also very good.:)

I did not write a review as I am not very good on the computer. :o

This could also be that a lot of people who had a great cruise like us did not write a review either. So the true CC satisfaction percentage could really be about 70 to 80 per cent. ;)

 

All I can say to future cruisers is go with an open mind and have a fantastic cruise, as I am sure it will be once you experience Anthem for yourselves. :D

Also if anyone is worried and wants to ask me a Question about the cruise we were on I will gladly put your mind at rest if I can. :)

 

Mark.

[MisterBill99]

This could also be that a lot of people who had a great cruise like us did not write a review either. So the true CC satisfaction percentage could really be about 70 to 80 per cent.

I used to think that the reason for the low numbers on the ratings was that only people who were unhappy took the time to write a review. And that's a reasonable thing to say, except that there are ships with much higher numbers, so it doesn't hold up to scrutiny.

 

I understood the displeasure with Quantum and the reason for the low numbers, it was lots of people who did not like DD. I'm not sure the reason for Anthem if it isn't real problems.

Edited December 3, 2015 by MisterBill99

[Biker19]

Would you think after so many bad comments regarding food and service higher ups already aware of all problems, and if they are not - they are not doing their job and if they do and not making any changes to improve - they are not doing their job. Only time will tell.

 

Or, perhaps, those "many" bad comments are such a low percentage of the overall comments that it doesn't warrant their attention.:cool:

[Cruise a holic]

Not accurate as if you read cruise critic member reviews and actually see the low ratings given by actual passengers, they are not good compared to other ships and cruise lines.

[denatravels]

Not accurate as if you read cruise critic member reviews and actually see the low ratings given by actual passengers, they are not good compared to other ships and cruise lines.

 

 

But those are only CC members, who make up a small percentage of overall passengers.

Irregardless of how many people say it (even 1 person), there should not be dirty dishes passed over by multiple employees (I think this was an issue on this thread-- I'm following so many "I hate anthem" threads")

[Cruise a holic]

Dirty Dishes is a small part of the overall issues. In addition I find CC participants to be active and freqent cruiser some are TA's. They do influence friends, relatives and those who follow the reviews, similar to Consumer Reports.

 

As I said before my Quantum cruise, I would give the ship a chance and form my own opinion. Had I taken the advise of the reviewers more seriously, perhaps I would have made another choice. So I understand those who need to experience things for themselves. Bottom line, nice too be on any cruise- but some are better then others

[champagne123]

Not accurate as if you read cruise critic member reviews and actually see the low ratings given by actual passengers, they are not good compared to other ships and cruise lines.

 

Yes, but most are not CC members. If you look at the date that they joined, it is the date they wrote the review. Funny how people find CC when all they want to do is post a complaint.

[Cruise a holic]

Yes, but most are not CC members. If you look at the date that they joined, it is the date they wrote the review. Funny how people find CC when all they want to do is post a complaint.

 

Actually I do not think that statement is accurate- I for one have written very positive reviews about my experience on other RC, Celebrity and many other lines and ships- the only really negative review was about the Quantum. And if you read the ratings of others, while some people have had a bad experience due to a cabin or service issue, overall, other ships have been given over 80% positive reviews by it's passengers in contrast to a 47% Quantum review.

 

We can agree to respectfully disagree!

Edited December 4, 2015 by Cruise a holic