Unhappy people on the Oosterdam 10/15/05

[obriendan]

If you're all in the Crow's nest at the same time, then we can't go there if we choose. It decreases our options! That's what all the comments on this thread have been about. Decreasing the options we've paid for!

[trubey]

Iggy and Ruth, Jim and Ahoy, I thank you for speaking for all of us.

 

New posters, did you read through this entire thread before posting? susana.

[Jim Gallup]

The results are in !!

I just spoke to my friends over on Oosterdam. After tallying the ratings on the comment cards from all the unhappy people on the cruise in question ...................................(Drum roll please) ..........................

 

 

The Oosterdam received the highest ratings they have seen in 6 months - from all those unhappy people.

 

Maybe they were not as unhappy as some claimed????????????????????

[cdkempton]

Simply amazing !!

[RuthC]

After tallying the ratings on the comment cards from all the unhappy people on the cruise in question ...................................(Drum roll please) ..........................

 

The Oosterdam received the highest ratings they have seen in 6 months - from all those unhappy people.

oh wonderful. :(

Thanks for the news. I think.

[ahoymatey3]

I demand a recount.

[Allis154]

The results are in !!

I just spoke to my friends over on Oosterdam. After tallying the ratings on the comment cards from all the unhappy people on the cruise in question ...................................(Drum roll please) ..........................

 

 

The Oosterdam received the highest ratings they have seen in 6 months - from all those unhappy people.

 

Maybe they were not as unhappy as some claimed????????????????????

 

The happy poeple must have been from the group.

[stanford's girl]

The happy poeple must have been from the group.

My thoughts exactly!! All the Princess House people must have made sure that they filled out the survey's with the highest ratings and turned them in.:rolleyes:

[Iggipolka]

This makes me very unhappy. :mad:

[jhannah]

Generally, not just one group responds to those surveys. They are placed in the stateroom ... one for every passenger. They give away prizes in a drawing from those who turn their surveys in, so that makes lots of people participate who normally wouldn't. I doubt the results were inordinately skewed by the group.

[RuthC]

Jim, please clarify---which week's comment cards are you speaking of? The Princess House week (10/15, I think) or the following week---the one with the "test". That week was supposed to have had someone from Seattle aboard to get comments other than the usual comment card at the end of the cruise.

Now I'm confused. Sorry, but as ya gets older ya gets dummer. :rolleyes:

[kryos]

The results are in !!

I just spoke to my friends over on Oosterdam. After tallying the ratings on the comment cards from all the unhappy people on the cruise in question ...................................(Drum roll please) ..........................

 

 

The Oosterdam received the highest ratings they have seen in 6 months - from all those unhappy people.

 

Maybe they were not as unhappy as some claimed????????????????????

Sounds like leisure-time dining will be the new standard ... whether we like it or not. I had a feeling that the types of people generally on these larger ships .... family cruisers and such ... would love this concept.

 

Wonder when formal nights will become optional? I doubt that's far behind ... at least on Alaska or Caribbean itineraries. I remember how shocked I was when I found out that on my upcoming 30-day Amsterdam cruise there are only FOUR formal nights. Not that I was disappointed ... but I know how much many others here on this board enjoy dressing up.

 

Yeah, the face of cruising ... she is a changin' ...

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[kryos]

The results are in !!

I just spoke to my friends over on Oosterdam. After tallying the ratings on the comment cards from all the unhappy people on the cruise in question ...................................(Drum roll please) ..........................

 

 

The Oosterdam received the highest ratings they have seen in 6 months - from all those unhappy people.

 

Maybe they were not as unhappy as some claimed????????????????????

The fact that no one posted here during the week of that actual sailing led me to believe that HAL took care of a lot of the passengers whose dining times were changed ... by throwing them little "bones" to make them happy. While there may have been a small portion who were really angry to be moved to early dining, I'd bet the majority went with the flow, enjoyed the little "bones" HAL threw them ... and had a wonderful cruise.

 

If there were truly a lot of angry passengers, we would have had all kinds of posts on this board the week of the actual sailing with the PH group. And I don't buy that the internet could have been down aboard ship the entire week. It had to be up sometime!

 

To my recollection, I only saw one post from an actual person onboard this sailing ... and I believe they even admitted that they had a good trip despite the inconveniences caused by the group.

 

Unfortunately, I don't think all the posts made by us in the world are ever gonna get HAL or any other line to turn away a group as big as PH. And, they will continue to give those groups all kinds of special bennies that will definitely impact the cruise experience of other passengers. Sadly, we can write posts on this board from now until the Second Coming, it's not gonna matter one iota ... the groups will sail and the groups will get their bennies. The only thing we can do is TRY to avoid them by searching the internet for their sailings (or using the list one of our members has been so kind to compile), or we can book longer sailings that generally don't appeal to groups.

 

Other than that ... if we get onboard and find we are sailing with a large group ... all we can do is grin and bear them. :(

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[kryos]

Non-group pax HAVE been kept out of lounges all night. Many people, myself included, aren't into gambling, so that knocks out the casino, walking around the deck is nice, but that gets cold and windy at night, and why shoudln't I have the right to go to a lounge and listen to music and talk with people if I want to! After all, I paid for this cruise too!

The Oosterdam, and most other large cruise ships, have more than one lounge, don't they? I don't think any cruiseline would allow the group to take over all of the lounges ... at least I've never heard of such.

 

As for the pool, though ... yeah, that kind of sucks when a group is allowed to take over the entire pool area for their private sailaway party. Not too bad for folks with a balcony ... but for the rest of us, makes us wonder if a cruise is even anything worth celebrating when you can't even be out on deck as you sail.

 

The thing I wonder about these private sailaway parties is why they have to have EXCLUSIVE use of the pool area. My guess is that the reason is because they are getting free drinks and the cruise line wants to ensure that other non-group passengers aren't shimmying in for the freebies. Well, real simple ... give the group members special lanyards with large badges. No badge, no free drink. Plain and simple. Everyone can enjoy sailaway at the pool, with only group members getting their drinks for free.

 

Even an idiot like me can figure that out ... why can't HAL?

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[Sailing for Jazz]

You are right - I've always been part of a group. However, I've been there

when the seminar/performance has ended abruptly because Bingo or the Art Auction needs the room. The ship has to cater to all of its passengers, but it would be impossible to give each passenger exactly what she wants at exactly the time each pax wants it. Plus, the ship has to protect it's profit centers - and bingo and auctions add more to the bottom line than a hot clairinet solo. By purchasing a cruise ticket, we are buying private sleeping accommodations and a right to share public space as part of the general ship population. We don't buy the right to the third deck chair from the left, but only the right to access to any of the deck chairs.

 

It's wrong for a ship to have so many groups that all public areas are closed off for long stretches of time - At that point, I'd have a long talk with someone in the ship's office.

 

On the other hand, if I've paid a premium to be part of a group, I want the opportunity to hear the people I've paid to see. For example, when we are

in port one evening, our group will be on board listening to a concert in the

Vista Lounge - it's the only evening it's available to us, because the ship's

entertainment dominates the venues.

[RuthC]

Rita, you've used the same quote to discuss the events of two different weeks. We need to clarify which of the weeks the comment cards are about before reaching any conclusions about what it might mean.

Jim is either referring to the Princess House cruise OR the Leisure Dining test, but is probably not referring to BOTH.

And where did you get the idea that "Leisure Dining" is somehow equivalent to the demise of "Formal" dining? One can dine "at leisure" and still dress.

[aaerobear]

Thanks Ruth, I was getting confused as well. We are talkin apples and oranges here. (definately NOT chocolate)

 

Ed

[kryos]

Rita, you've used the same quote to discuss the events of two different weeks. We need to clarify which of the weeks the comment cards are about before reaching any conclusions about what it might mean.

Jim is either referring to the Princess House cruise OR the Leisure Dining test, but is probably not referring to BOTH.

And where did you get the idea that "Leisure Dining" is somehow equivalent to the demise of "Formal" dining? One can dine "at leisure" and still dress.

Good point. I thought the experiment was also being done on the same ship. Didn't realize it was different weeks.

 

I didn't say "leisure dining" meant no formal. I'm just saying the winds of change are bound to bring about changes in dress codes too ... especially for certain types of voyages, such as Caribbean or Alaska, where many people are not too crazy about having to "gussy up."

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[kryos]

Dammed double post again. :(

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita