Why no Diamond Event on Empress?

[LMaxwell]

There is a Diamond Event held on every ship until Empress re-entered the fleet. It offers wine/beer/soft drinks in a section of a lounge. On Majesty they basically treat it the same as a Diamond Lounge. The Royal Website says every ship will have a Diamond Event but apparently on Empress Diamond and up get 3 vouchers for use during certain hours of the day and that's it.

 

I know in some other threads people were trying to get a straight answer on this; any updates?

 

If Royal is going to advertise a benefit as being fleetwide, it should be consistently applied.

[ZoeyVictoria]

I think they are unwilling to provide dedicated personnel to staff it and can't/won't provide snacks. There was no food provided at the Top Tier Event. My SO asked for peanuts or crackers at several bars. He was told "No" and, once, "Maybe later." Our table mates were very outspoken about their unhappiness with a lot of the food issues and, surprisingly, on the last day somebody went into the back room and produced a container of trail mix for them. I don't think they can handle the fews extras that a Diamond event would require.

[LMaxwell]

I think they are unwilling to provide dedicated personnel to staff it and can't/won't provide snacks. There was no food provided at the Top Tier Event. My SO asked for peanuts or crackers at several bars. He was told "No" and, once, "Maybe later." Our table mates were very outspoken about their unhappiness with a lot of the food issues and, surprisingly, on the last day somebody went into the back room and produced a container of trail mix for them. I don't think they can handle the fews extras that a Diamond event would require.

 

Do you think this is an issue that could be resolved with crew becoming more familiar with the ship, additional training, etc.? Reading the RCI website I'd expect certain amenities and would be less than pleased to be told "Yeah, we don't do that on this ship". If it weren't for CC I wouldn't know these events weren't happening.

 

If Royal is not planning to resolve these issues they need to be VERY upfront on their website in disclaiming.

[Ken at the beach]

Do you think this is an issue that could be resolved with crew becoming more familiar with the ship, additional training, etc.? Reading the RCI website I'd expect certain amenities and would be less than pleased to be told "Yeah, we don't do that on this ship". If it weren't for CC I wouldn't know these events weren't happening.

 

If Royal is not planning to resolve these issues they need to be VERY upfront on their website in disclaiming.

 

Thanks for the morning laugh.:D.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

It may well be that this happens in the future.

 

It seems they were short staffed and working as fast as they could to finish/fix things. [not saying this is the way it should be] I do not think we will know what the Empress will be like and her various services until she has more work complete.

[ZoeyVictoria]

Do you think this is an issue that could be resolved with crew becoming more familiar with the ship, additional training, etc.?

 

I think the crew would be willing to work a Diamond Event, but the decision to schedule it is not made by them. There is so much basic training to catch up on that I can't imagine when anything "extra" could happen. A (former) Pullmantur bartender had no idea what a Diamond drink was and charged me $12.99 for cranberry juice and vodka, until a co-worker tried to explain it and finally gave up and said, "Zero!". By the last night, he understood Diamond drinks. But then we watched him remove the entire wrapper from a straw and use his finger on the top of the straw to put it into a passenger's drink. So very, very many small things wrong on this ship, how long will it take to correct them all?

[silentbob007]

The whole "Diamond Event" thing was also well before they added drinks to your card during the cocktail hour. Having been on Majesty several times when it was on the "event", I much prefer being able to get three drinks of my choosing (from a limited list) than choosing between "white", "red", or cola and only getting a discount on something with hard liquor in it. I realize my preferences don't necessarily match those of others, but if it is really space that everyone wants, I don't see why there can't be an informal decision to use a lounge for D and above to mingle with each other.

[pstone1]

There was absolutely no communication from Daniela, the Loyalty Ambassador, regarding a Diamond Event. When we asked, she just said "no, there would not be one" and would not provide any explanation. She acted like we should not have expected one.

 

The same thing happened with the Diamond Breakfast. Daniela actually told us there would be a Diamond Breakfast section in the MDR on the two mornings without Brunch. When we followed her direction that morning, we found there was no section and no one knew what we were talking about. When we asked her what happened, there was no explanation, more like "oh well".

 

Bad communication - sad that's not a surprise.

[LMaxwell]

The whole "Diamond Event" thing was also well before they added drinks to your card during the cocktail hour. Having been on Majesty several times when it was on the "event", I much prefer being able to get three drinks of my choosing (from a limited list) than choosing between "white", "red", or cola and only getting a discount on something with hard liquor in it. I realize my preferences don't necessarily match those of others, but if it is really space that everyone wants, I don't see why there can't be an informal decision to use a lounge for D and above to mingle with each other.

 

On Majesty before the vouchers they used a small section of the VCL and honored the standard Diamond drink list with no extra charges and had hot and cold appetizers as well. It was very nice. They still do this on Majesty. They have decided to go above and beyond what guests expect, which is great IMO.

 

I don't think onboard staff should have to informally decide to honor Royal's advertising, nor should management be placing them in the awkward position of denying a benefit published on the website as fleetwide. If Royal says Diamond, D+, and Pinnacle members are to receive free wine/beer/soda certain hours of the day (without being limited to the 3 vouchers) that is what D/D+/P would expect boarding a ship, no? They are doing less than what guests expect on Empress and that is the wrong way to handle business; to find out once onboard is an insult.

 

I hope these are teething issues and will be resolved soon. I have guarded optimism regarding this.

[LMaxwell]

 

The same thing happened with the Diamond Breakfast. Daniela actually told us there would be a Diamond Breakfast section in the MDR on the two mornings without Brunch.

 

The Royal website says, specifically on the Empress page

 

"Enjoy a sunset on every cruise and decadent Sunday brunch with a complimentary Mimosa or Bloody Mary every day of the week."

 

So even Royal says the Brunch should be daily, but apparently that is not happening either.

 

So many issues are why I actually am guardedly optimistic that with further training and communication things will be made "right". Things are so out of whack from what Royal is saying guests should expect.

[pstone1]

The Royal website says, specifically on the Empress page

 

"Enjoy a sunset on every cruise and decadent Sunday brunch with a complimentary Mimosa or Bloody Mary every day of the week."

 

So even Royal says the Brunch should be daily, but apparently that is not happening either.

 

So many issues are why I actually am guardedly optimistic that with further training and communication things will be made "right". Things are so out of whack from what Royal is saying guests should expect.

 

You are correct! We realized right away that there should have been Brunch offered everyday. There were just so many issues and Brunch, especially the first one, was so bad, it didn't even matter anymore. We were totally beaten down by the end of Day 2.

[lr657]

The Royal website says, specifically on the Empress page

 

"Enjoy a sunset on every cruise and decadent Sunday brunch with a complimentary Mimosa or Bloody Mary every day of the week."

 

So even Royal says the Brunch should be daily, but apparently that is not happening either.

 

So many issues are why I actually am guardedly optimistic that with further training and communication things will be made "right". Things are so out of whack from what Royal is saying guests should expect.

 

Despite what was advertised, the Sunday Brunch was only served on the 2 sea days and only 1 Mimosa or Bloody Mary was complimentary. During the first brunch when we waited over 2 hours for our food, we were told that we would be charged for any additional Bloody Mary's.

 

We were informed by Daniela that a Diamond breakfast would occur on the days that Sunday Brunch wasn't occurring. When this didn't happen the first time, Daniela stated she would speak with the dining staff, but this obviously there was no follow up.

 

We used our pre-loaded drinks at the Schooner Bar each night and fortunately didn't have any problems with being charged. During our sailing there was so much going wrong, I don't think that the crew would have been able to handle any additional services. I think that it will take a while to completely orient and train the crew although I'm not quite sure why this didn't happen while all the necessary repairs were being made.

[LMaxwell]

Sounds like the crew spent a too much time taking selfies on the beach in Freeport and not reading the company manual.

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

Despite what was advertised, the Sunday Brunch was only served on the 2 sea days and only 1 Mimosa or Bloody Mary was complimentary. During the first brunch when we waited over 2 hours for our food, we were told that we would be charged for any additional Bloody Mary's.

 

I guess I'll get technical...The website says a complimentary mimosa or bloody mary.

[lr657]

I guess I'll get technical...The website says a complimentary mimosa or bloody mary.

 

Good point, I missed that detail. Might of been nice to provide a second one though since everyone was waiting over 2 hours for food in an extremely hot dining room since AC wasn't working properly. Would have helped make the wait more tolerable for everyone.

[pstone1]

I guess I'll get technical...The website says a complimentary mimosa or bloody mary.

 

True, but one might think that after two hours (or heck, even after one hour), it would be a brilliant PR move to offer another complementary Mimosa or Bloody Mary! :p:p

[LMaxwell]

I guess I'll get technical...The website says a complimentary mimosa or bloody mary.

 

Yes, but if you divide out the number of promised brunches by the number actually held, the drink count can be averaged out higher. :D

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

Good point, I missed that detail. Might of been nice to provide a second one though since everyone was waiting over 2 hours for food in an extremely hot dining room since AC wasn't working properly. Would have helped make the wait more tolerable for everyone.

 

True, but one might think that after two hours (or heck, even after one hour), it would be a brilliant PR move to offer another complementary Mimosa or Bloody Mary! :p:p

 

Yeah, I totally agree that in this case, a second or third (even unlimited) should've been offered. I was just speaking in general, that when things start running normally, it will be just one.

[iluvcruzin]

I hope these are teething issues and will be resolved soon. I have guarded optimism regarding this.

 

WHY? I'm not sure why you are even concerned about this? You aren't participating in any roll calls yet have almost 11K posts in 3 years. Gesh.. Nothing like starting a thread about something as minor as the Diamond event isn't ready. NEWS FLASH.. It isn't that big of a deal with drink vouchers added.

[LMaxwell]

WHY? I'm not sure why you are even concerned about this? You aren't participating in any roll calls yet have almost 11K posts in 3 years. Gesh.. Nothing like starting a thread about something as minor as the Diamond event isn't ready. NEWS FLASH.. It isn't that big of a deal with drink vouchers added.

 

Because I live 45 minutes from the ship and once it starts going to Cuba I'll probably book. They only have published itineraries for the next 7 weeks, so yeah, not going on it while they have these kinds of problems. I've been asking when those itineraries are going to come out so that I can book.

 

I think Royal should be honest in their advertising and it is an issue that the website says one thing and the people on the ship say another.

 

Did they eliminate the Diamond Lounge on the Enchantment when they started with the vouchers? No. Consistency is expected.

 

Not everyone is on CC and gets this sort of info. If I booked off the website and got onboard and was told they aren't going to provide the amenities listed on the website I'd be ticked off. So would a lot of others. Some are happy to settle for less than they paid for. that's how companies get into the mindset of getting away with as little as possible.

 

Try to understand the issue before commenting; and I have no idea what my post count has to do with anything. You just taking a pot shot with that or what?

 

FYI - I've got booked cruises on Royal, Carnival, and NCL at the moment, not on any roll call. Cabin crawls and slot pulls are of no interest to me.

Edited June 5, 2016 by LMaxwell

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

Wow.

[LMaxwell]

Wow.

 

Wow what?

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

Wow what?

 

Not at you. The "attack".

 

;)

 

(Should've quoted)

Edited June 5, 2016 by OfTheSeasCruiser

[iluvcruzin]

Because I live 45 minutes from the ship and once it starts going to Cuba I'll probably book. They only have published itineraries for the next 7 weeks, so yeah, not going on it while they have these kinds of problems. I've been asking when those itineraries are going to come out so that I can book.

 

I think Royal should be honest in their advertising and it is an issue that the website says one thing and the people on the ship say another.

 

Did they eliminate the Diamond Lounge on the Enchantment when they started with the vouchers? No. Consistency is expected.

 

Not everyone is on CC and gets this sort of info. If I booked off the website and got onboard and was told they aren't going to provide the amenities listed on the website I'd be ticked off. So would a lot of others. Some are happy to settle for less than they paid for. that's how companies get into the mindset of getting away with as little as possible.

 

Try to understand the issue before commenting; and I have no idea what my post count has to do with anything. You just taking a pot shot with that or what?

 

FYI - I've got booked cruises on Royal, Carnival, and NCL at the moment, not on any roll call. Cabin crawls and slot pulls are of no interest to me.

 

You made this an issue by pulling the information from another thread. I have been on the Empress. I've also been on inaugural sailings. It takes time to get the kinks out. Not all ships have the same services or operate the same way across the fleet. I know that from experience too. And most people who are at least Diamond or above would be seasoned enough to know this sort of thing occur and wouldn't be mad about it. I for one that fall into that category don't think it's a big deal.

[pstone1]

Yeah, I totally agree that in this case, a second or third (even unlimited) should've been offered. I was just speaking in general, that when things start running normally, it will be just one.

 

We knew it was only one but were just a little surprised considering the situation. I did feel bad that some people were so desperate they did fork over their Seapass cards for another one. :eek:

 

Hopefully it all gets ironed out. The Brunch was a nice idea.