Grand Princess 12/17-24/05

[Guest AdmiralNelson]

I saw the sign too, I didn't think it was odd. It said something more to the effect "Excellent service doesn't mean perfect, but it means better than expected". It seemed motivational to me. But maybe that is too many years of motivational Wayne Gretzky quotes before hitting the ice for me...

 

I hope your name's not Walter! Anyway sounds like you are Canadian, if so no problems worjing on the ships. If you are an American you would have to pay Taxes! You have been on the Grand, did you see the signed puck and Greztky picture in Snookers bar?

[spongerob]

Some of her complaints may seem unreasonable, but she is entitled to her opinion and to voice it. What's wrong with getting your frustrations off your chest? I don't think any of her comments were directed to anyone on this board?

 

Why respond? Because others will read that post, think it's gospel truth, then start posting "worried about my cruise, did I make a mistake" threads. Or they'll think that it's appropriate to complain about a late departure when the ship has to wait for all the passengers to board...and so on. There is a huge difference between posting information, even if it is negative, and throwing a verbal temper tantrum that blames the captain of the ship for every little thing that happens. Do you really want to be on a cruise where everyone thinks that way? I think not.

[cruise fairy]

Why respond? Because others will read that post, think it's gospel truth, then start posting "worried about my cruise, did I make a mistake" threads. Or they'll think that it's appropriate to complain about a late departure when the ship has to wait for all the passengers to board...and so on. There is a huge difference between posting information, even if it is negative, and throwing a verbal temper tantrum that blames the captain of the ship for every little thing that happens. Do you really want to be on a cruise where everyone thinks that way? I think not.

 

I do agree with you to an extent....and I don't have a problem with people responding, but I don't feel there is any reason for some of the responders to be so nasty. People for the most part are smart enough to know the difference between a verbal temper tantrum and valid complaints.

Maybe I read the original post incorrectly, but I thought the reason Princess pulled out of port late was because they had to wait for everyone to board ship secondary to Princess not having enough staff to check passengers in. Sometimes, for some folks, 1st impressions of any experience can set the tone for the entire experience....whether it is cruising, skiing, etc...

My personal experience with boarding was excellant...15 minutes tops! As for being on a cruise with everyone having a negative attitude.....that will never happen! (how would it be possible for eveyone to be negative when they are cruising! :p ) I enjoy myself regardless of what everyone else's attitude is.

As always....I do enjoy your posts!

[niborHS]

Rachelle, I meant that they don't have towels in bins by the pool. That is what I would prefer. It just makes things easier, IMHO. This way, if for some reason someone takes your towel, what do you do?

[stephenandrew]

Why respond? Because others will read that post, think it's gospel truth, then start posting "worried about my cruise, did I make a mistake" threads. Or they'll think that it's appropriate to complain about a late departure when the ship has to wait for all the passengers to board...and so on. There is a huge difference between posting information, even if it is negative, and throwing a verbal temper tantrum that blames the captain of the ship for every little thing that happens. Do you really want to be on a cruise where everyone thinks that way? I think not.

 

 

I am sorry, but I can't help but laugh at this. I appreciate the fact that you are trying to be helpful, but I don't think you give people enough credit for formualting their own opinions based on their expereinces, and a wide variety of reviews/posts/etc. (both positive and negative) that they find on here (and other places). I don't think this post alone will cause the entire ship board population of my next cruise to have a "bad attitude".

[MichTraveler]

Took me a little time to read all of these posts. It was like watching an accident. I didn't want to continue, but I couldn't help myself:p

Whenever I am on a ship and I start to say anything negative, my DH reminds me "you are on a cruise -- they feed you, entertain you, serve you -- and you are not working!" I snap right back into vacation mode and sit back and relax. Looking forward to another!!

[spongerob]

I don't think this post alone will cause the entire ship board population of my next cruise to have a "bad attitude".

 

One post, unchallenged, won't hurt anything. A series of posts, or someone coming back posting the same complaint time and again, is different. I'm not worried about the entire ship, just the people who come here to learn about cruise vacations. I hope we send them off prepared to enjoy their cruises, no matter what.

[bdjam]

I am sorry, but I can't help but laugh at this. I appreciate the fact that you are trying to be helpful, but I don't think you give people enough credit for formualting their own opinions based on their expereinces, and a wide variety of reviews/posts/etc. (both positive and negative) that they find on here (and other places). I don't think this post alone will cause the entire ship board population of my next cruise to have a "bad attitude".

I don’t think that all together true. I’ve had people ask me why I cruise Princess when posts here say so many bad things about the food. There have been posts here which have indicated great drops in the Princess service levels and their thoughts have been derived by extreme posts. The original poster on this thread was obviously not posting rationally – otherwise it wouldn’t have been noted that the ship was late sailing because the Captain was “messing around.” But someone who may never have cruised before, or may never have been on Princess before might take everything that was said there seriously. And I’m sure the “old cranky grannies” in Galveston wouldn’t appreciate that.

[stephenandrew]

One post, unchallenged, won't hurt anything. A series of posts, or someone coming back posting the same complaint time and again, is different. I'm not worried about the entire ship, just the people who come here to learn about cruise vacations. I hope we send them off prepared to enjoy their cruises, no matter what.

 

 

We will just have to agree to disagree on this. For what its worth, I do appreciate the vast vast majority of your input. Thank you.

[stephenandrew]

I don’t think that all together true. I’ve had people ask me why I cruise Princess when posts here say so many bad things about the food. There have been posts here which have indicated great drops in the Princess service levels and their thoughts have been derived by extreme posts. The original poster on this thread was obviously not posting rationally – otherwise it wouldn’t have been noted that the ship was late sailing because the Captain was “messing around.” But someone who may never have cruised before, or may never have been on Princess before might take everything that was said there seriously. And I’m sure the “old cranky grannies” in Galveston wouldn’t appreciate that.

 

 

The guy or gal who posted this was obviously..ummm...not the best writer---I will put it that way. I really can't believe that anyone, even someone who has never cruised before, would put a lot of stock in this opinion. I just find it kind of funny that some folks on here feel the need to play "Princess police"---defend the line's honor at all cost!! Don't you really find posts like that of the OP more funny that anything else?

[surfklutz]

I agree with you - she didn't get what she expected - and I really didn't think her expectations were out of line. If I enjoyed towel animals - I would be dissappointed that they did not do it - if that is what I expected.

 

I think that many posters feel like they have to come to the defense of a cruise line - and I do think that most reasonable people know that not everything is going to be perfect. But you still have a right to be dissappointed and express an opinion. Making fun of the poster and her dissappointments is pretty lame. Your complaint might be nothing to someone else. It is all in your expectations.

 

The sign in the dining room - just plain tacky - no matter what spin you put on it. Let your service speak for you - not a sign to indicate how to qualify your opinions. Princess dropped the ball on this cruise. The fact that many posters mentioned an "under current" in the dining room is interesting and disaapointing. We hate it when we are in line in a grocery store and you can tell that people don't like their job - we hate it even more when we have paid for a vacation.

[Rachelle]

Rachelle, I meant that they don't have towels in bins by the pool. That is what I would prefer. It just makes things easier, IMHO. This way, if for some reason someone takes your towel, what do you do?

 

Ahh.... I'm sorry :) I agree that probably would have been nice... :)

[bdjam]

The guy or gal who posted this was obviously..ummm...not the best writer---I will put it that way. I really can't believe that anyone, even someone who has never cruised before, would put a lot of stock in this opinion. I just find it kind of funny that some folks on here feel the need to play "Princess police"---defend the line's honor at all cost!! Don't you really find posts like that of the OP more funny that anything else?

I think you put a lot of faith in your fellow man – good for you - but as I've stated, I've seen others not so wise as you. As for playing Princess Police, I am playing Princess Cheerleader, remember? Nobody is playing police, nobody is watching Princess’ back, nobody is defending their honor - those of us who have responded have done so mostly to balance the opinion that was posted. If the moderators feel the responses aren’t appropriate, I’m sure they will remove them or lock the thread.

And to answer your question, yes, I didn't find the original post funny, I found it ridiculous. Hence my need to respond - if I want to cheer for my team, so what? I guess I don't understand why some on these boards get bent out of shape if those of us who have had nothing but positive experiences with Princess say so...?

[Rachelle]

Hi Rachelle, I am not sure if you are american or British, but P&O Princess have an officer cadet ship scheme, for persons between 17 and 25 (at time of starting), which, dependant on the options you choose, leads to either a career in navigation, or engineering. It lasts for 3 years with both college course's intermixed with time at sea. I think the P&O one below may only be open to persons in the U.K, but I may be wrong, and I am sure similar schemes will probably exist in the USA.

 

The web site is at http://www.oceanopportunities.com/ - Ive applied, and got through to the assesment stage, so I hope I just have to pass that, and soon I could be sailing the world ;-)

 

That is really cool!!!! I think you may have just helped with my inability to find a career path that interests or suits me. I am a geography major so navigation, travel, etc have always been an interest. Then I have such a passion for being on the ocean. What a great website... I am definitely going to look into whats available in the United States for similar opportunities. Good luck with the next stage! I'd love to keep in touch and see how you progress through it... What a great opportunity! Thanks again!

Rachelle

[davoni]

What are towel animals?????:confused:

[Rachelle]

What are towel animals?????:confused:

[alibail]

and if your cabin steward is really new, you get a snake :)

 

The best one I have ever seen was one done of a lobster. (granted they used every towel / face cloth)

[senior lady]

I have to agree. On our Mexican cruise last Nov on the Mercury, we didn't get any towel animals. I really did miss opening our cabin door and looking to see what was either hanging, or lying on our bed:eek:

But not having them sure didn't ruin our cruise!!!!!! Life is way to short to complain or worry about not having "towel animals"

[alibail]

Good luck with the next stage! I'd love to keep in touch and see how you progress through it... What a great opportunity! Thanks again!

Rachelle

 

Sure, i'll keep you informed on my progress, assuming I get it, don't hold that much hope :(

[JLC@SD]

:mad:

This was a seriously disappointing vacation. We love cruising, this was our sixth, the 2nd on the Grand. We loved it so much last time, that we immediately rebooked for 2005. Big mistake. Captain Andy, tho personable, did NOT run a tight ship. The crew was disinterested and grumpy...plodded thru their jobs...THERE WAS NO MAJIC!!! The food in the dining room was pretty good, tho the food was much less expensive than before...it was prepared well. The service was mediocre...we had 3 different waiters...all of whom were "ok," but did not go beyond the minimun. The main problem we noticed was the middle management seemed to have the European "we are royalty, you are CRAP" attitude. One of the junior head waiters (snippy 20 something) actually asked our table to leave dinner on lobster night because she wanted to make sure we cleared the table by 8pm. It was 7pm at the time. We were late for dinner because of Captn Andy's tender disaster...He took literally 3 hours to get us from Cozumel pier to the ship. We were the closest ship! A turtle could have swam it in 5 minutes. We cleared our table by 5 of 8pm. LA TI DA!

The careless neglect of all of the personel resulted in frustrating long lines that were unnecessary every day of that cursed cruise.

It seemed it was either the crew's first, or last cruise. Have you heard never buy a car built on either Monday morning or Friday afternoon because it might be a lemon? The Grand and all her crew make up one big fat LEMON! We really are considering joining a class action suit if anyone else on that cruise is interested. We need a vacation more now than before!

The captain let us stand out in the 45 F blowing rain in Galveston while 7 cranky old grannies s l o w l y checked in 2,900 people at the Hotel Galvez. We fought our way to them to ask why had they not called for help hours ago (2 hours into the line when it had moved about 50 feet, maybe..), & were tersely told, "I am just checking in passengers!" Finally, after many, many, many of us called the corporate headquarters to ask what was going on (it was already after the Grand was supposed to leave), a few Princess timidly appeared & clucked around...did nothing. I was told by Jessica from LA corporate that Princess was doing their best..but because of the severe weather and traffic, check in was slow. I answered that while the weather was very unpleasant, it had not slowed traffic, & there was not that much congestion...The problem was that Princess does not care about their passengers, does not respect that these people had chosen to give Princess hard earned $ in order to relax and be pampered for a week...DID NOT HAPPEN!!!!

Jessica said that Princess had called in more operaters to take complaint calls in LA. Does that make sense? How about calling in some additional people to speed up the check in where it counts? GRRRRRRRRR

Sadly, the week continued on its fated downward spiral. We were so looking forward to watching movies under the stars...2, yes 2 nites of the week they showed Tina Turner music videos. Can you believe it? The one night that there was a decent movie - Batman Begins there were not enough seats, & no one would go get more. By the way, the main show that evening was a guy from OK doing rope & hangar tricks....

2nd rate, lousy, crummy, the whole thing stank. Captain Andy messed around in Galveston so that we did not leave port till after 8pm - 4 hours late. No hope of making our first port of call Costa Maya by 10 am Monday. However, he took the ship at 22.5 knots thru the night and into the next day. (The limit is supposed to be 22 knots.) At lunch, the ship was lurching so badly, that you could hardly eat, stand, or do anything. Dramamine was gone from the shelves...People were vomiting...one little girl threw up in the buffet line right in front of us. ICK. So, we got to Costa Maya by around noon. Many had shore tours that they were rushed thru, and maybe had 30 minutes for beach time, or to snorkel. For some reason, Captain Andy decided to leave CM 2 hours earlier than posted, so we left around 4:30pm.

Our bath towels were ratty, worn & no towel animals..the shops were poorly stocked...The endless "Coke" was terrible..watery...cheap cola mix. The coffee was bitter, as well as the tea in the buffet area. Carnival's incidious sponge cake was creeping onto the buffet table....danger of more crappy food. The only juices in the am were watery, bitter orange, or overly sweet watery cran-apple. The eggs were a study in tastelessness...except they did taste old...

More details...the drinks in the bar were spotty. Some bartenders were fine & made a good drink, others were snotty & gave you crap to drink. The photographers were few & not very good. The dinner bread was left over from a camp somewhere in the past.

You could break a foot by dropping either the pancakes or French toast on it.

On the very limited upside, the Sterling Steakhouse was very good. The fruits were fine. Cheeses were very nice...not much variety tho. We loved our balcony. The little filets that were always on the menu were very nice. Can't think of anything else positive to say. We were the 3rd to last group to be called off the ship, then there was a long line for suitcase carts...typical. Hurry up & wait because the persons in charge don't care enough to think ahead to avoid you standing in line for hours. I think that sums it up.

 

It took 56 posts to get to the best response to this original post:

 

Took me a little time to read all of these posts. It was like watching an accident. I didn't want to continue, but I couldn't help myself:p

Whenever I am on a ship and I start to say anything negative, my DH reminds me "you are on a cruise -- they feed you, entertain you, serve you -- and you are not working!" I snap right back into vacation mode and sit back and relax. Looking forward to another!!

 

Thanks MichTraveler for the best perspective...........:)

[davoni]

Thanks Rachelle, how cool!:)

[jbobst]

"And to answer your question, yes, I didn't find the original post funny, I found it ridiculous. Hence my need to respond - if I want to cheer for my team, so what? I guess I don't understand why some on these boards get bent out of shape if those of us who have had nothing but positive experiences with Princess say so...?"

Bdjam,

I don't think anyone is bent out of shape if people respond to negative posts with positive comments. In fact, I think that is the whole purpose of these forums...to give a balanced view of what cruising is like. HOWEVER, when you post things in a sarcastic tone like "And I’m sure the “old cranky grannies” in Galveston wouldn’t appreciate that", I guess that kind of statement just doesn't come across very well. I don't know how you can blame anyone for being upset at rude customer service reps (who have chosen this line of work in the first place!). If things happen that are out of the cruise line's control (like having to check people in at a hotel instead of at the terminal at the last minute), Princess HAS to have a better "plan B" in place. I realize the the check-in reps had probably heard their fair share of complaints from cruise passengers that morning, but part of their job is providing good service to the passengers in good and bad times. Princess should have handled this situation much better in my opinion, and when they didn't, the check-in agents should have been more understanding of what the passengers were going through and aware that they are the face of Princess at that moment (and therefore will be facing the brunt of the complaints). The paying passenger is paying their salary, and if they don't like hearing the passengers complain, then maybe they should put more pressure on Princess to have more people available for check-in or maybe they should look for another line of work.

Maybe you didn't mean that comment in a sarcastic way, but there were other comments in this thread that sounded as though they were attacking the original post person. As MANY people have already mentioned, the original post was a little harsh, and blaming the captain for some the problems is obviously wrong. However, he or she did pay alot of money for the cruise and the problems should have been handled better. I know that when I feel cheated or upset about things, my frustration does get the better of me sometimes and I probably say some stupid things as well.

Of course you have the right to respond in anyway, and I really do appreciate the positive view of things. My biggest "concern", if you want to call it that, is that if someone does have a bad cruise experience, they might be hesitant to post their comments for fear of being criticized so much. Of course, if you "fear" an online forum, maybe you have other problems :).... I simply like to hear both sides of things, and I certainly don't take one negative review as the way it is going to be for me...rather, I just want as much info as possible so I can prepare myself for potential problems that might come up. That way, it is just that much easier to let it roll off my back and continue on to have a good attitude about the rest of the cruise.

Keep coming with the positive side, and I certainly appreciate the so-called cheerleading view of things! (just without the harshness).

Can't wait for my cruise in 5 weeks on the GRAND !!!!!

[cruise182]

[

quote=bdjam]I expect to get flamed by those who feel negative reports should not be bashed, but remember folks, some of you appointed me Princess Cheerleader, and I’m only doing my job:

well, glad that you are admitting it!!

I’ve never had MAJIC on my cruise either – or maybe I have and I just don’t know what it is?

Wife and I have magic on every cruise. If not, we would do land vacations!! Perhaps I just have the best wife in the world!!!

If this is true, I wonder in the first place how they were treated to get that attitude?

The old turn around......figures!!

I would be interesting to know what the basis for this lawsuit is going to be – how did Princess Cruises breach the contract it had with you?

So as long as a cruise line does not breach their contract all should be expectable? Sorry my friend, mane suits have been lost on contracts that were not breached!

I’m sure these ladies wouldn’t like being called names, especially after a day having to deal with 2900 wet, cranky passengers.

!I don't care if it was 20,000 wet cranky passengers!! What does that have to do with it?

Wow, they sure cared about me when I was on Dawn Princess and they PAMPERED me for 10 days!

That was your experience!!! Lets not forget that you are "friendly with numerous TOP Princess staff" so I am not sure your experience really is a fair comparison!!

I’m shocked – what good is the thing? They should take it off poor Grand Princess – probably would help with the electrical issues.

I agree!!

[cruise182]

[

quote=bdjam]I expect to get flamed by those who feel negative reports should not be bashed, but remember folks, some of you appointed me Princess Cheerleader, and I’m only doing my job:

well, glad that you are admitting it!!

I’ve never had MAJIC on my cruise either – or maybe I have and I just don’t know what it is?

Wife and I have magic on every cruise. If not, we would do land vacations!! Perhaps I just have the best wife in the world!!!

If this is true, I wonder in the first place how they were treated to get that attitude?

The old turn around......figures!!

I would be interesting to know what the basis for this lawsuit is going to be – how did Princess Cruises breach the contract it had with you?

So as long as a cruise line does not breach their contract all should be expectable? Sorry my friend, mane suits have been lost on contracts that were not breached!

I’m sure these ladies wouldn’t like being called names, especially after a day having to deal with 2900 wet, cranky passengers.

!I don't care if it was 20,000 wet cranky passengers!! What does that have to do with it?

Wow, they sure cared about me when I was on Dawn Princess and they PAMPERED me for 10 days!

That was your experience!!! Lets not forget that you are "friendly with numerous TOP Princess staff" so I am not sure your experience really is a fair comparison!!

I’m shocked – what good is the thing? They should take it off poor Grand Princess – probably would help with the electrical issues.

I agree!!

[bdjam]

HOWEVER, when you post things in a sarcastic tone like "And I’m sure the “old cranky grannies” in Galveston wouldn’t appreciate that", I guess that kind of statement just doesn't come across very well.

I’m sorry – I was only repeating what was in the original post as an indication of how ridiculous it was. I assumed that anyone following the thread would have read the original post and made the connection.