Never again........cost does not equal value......not for kids under 3 years old !!!!

[AUDRAA928]

We were on Adventure of the Seas from July 6-13 2018.

 

We chose this cruise because of the convenience of it leaving from Bayonne. It was our first trip with our 2 kids (3 and 14 months) and we were looking for something easy in terms of travel. We had heard good things about RCCL and the last time I was on RCCL was in 2002 (Radiance of the Seas).

 

We have so many regrets and will do things VERY different next time, if there is a next time! For what we paid, we did not feel we got the value. I plan to also write a letter to RCCL.

 

Cabin: We had the Grand Suite - 2 bedroom. It is an older ship and it showed. The sink drain had corrosion and the telephone cords had dust intertwined, it was GROSS (PICS ATTACHED)

 

Given what we spent on the cruise, we did not feel like we were in a suite or treated like we paid "suite" rates. We were told we would have a crib in the room - I had to call for it when we got there (since it was nap time) and when it arrived it was a pack and play and VERY small. My daughter who is 14 months old, was head to toe and didn't fit. The refrigerator wasn't cold, and I had to call maintenance. And even when they say they fixed it, it never got cold enough for drinks. Be prepared, there are LIMITED outlets in the room. Again, for a suite, I was really surprised. We have traveled Celebrity on OLDER ships and the Royal Suite was 100 times better than what we had on RCCL.

 

CONCIERGE service is a joke and non-existent. Mine was not helpful at all. Do not count on private babysitting services after hours in your room, they made it sound like it was a service. IT IS NOT !!! The crew does this on their own time. I called twice and was told NO twice. My husband and I did not go out once together in 7 days. I was totally misled. Guest Services was just as bad. I didn't find them helpful and the lines were always long.

 

The suite lounge and perks were nice and a great way to get some quiet time when the pool was overcrowded. Having a section by the pool was also nice but we needed shade so we couldn't use it.

 

Windjammer was just OK. Finding a high chair for the baby was a challenge EVERYDAY. It was so crowded on sailing days that we went to the dining room to feel a more civilized. They would rope off a section of the buffet which made no sense !!! Lacked waiter service and you cannot get your own drinks, you need to walk up to the drink area and someone will hand you what you want. I could not even get my own cup of coffee, I had to wait on line for coffee !!!! It also lacked waiter service in the morning and dishes would pile up.

 

Pool Area: There was only one place to get towels and to drop off towels - for the amount of people on the cruise they need more places to do that! Why wouldn't they have a towel bin on each side ---- the lines were crazy.

 

Splash Away Bay was the only place my 14 month old could swim since she is still in diapers. (note, babies in diapers or swim diapers cannot use the pools). They had it open limited hours which means when they closed it, we all could not be outside together as a family. None of this was explained when we booked (yes, i spoke to a RCCL a rep when I booked).... how can you limit hours on the only place they can hang out on hot day!? Many parents had the same complaint.

 

Dining Service: We had no issues. Food was good, dining room service was wonderful. My husband has allergies and they paid close attention to that. They always had the high chair set up for when we came to dinner.

 

Photography: OMG, what a disaster!!! My pictures wound up in another family account, I had other people pictures on our account. Every time I went to complain, no one wanted to help me. "I understand m'am" is all I heard. We only bought ONE picture - normally I would have bought more. Terrible customer service overall.

 

Medical: We had to use medical services for my 14 month old as she came down with a bad cold and needed her nebulizer. The ships DR was amazing and so caring. We had brought our own equipment and mask from home but my daughter wound up with bronchitis so they gave her an antibiotic. He checked on her again at no charge. I am thankful for that service. You hope you never have to use it but since we did I wanted to mention the wonderful care we received.

 

Overall, we had a good time because we were together as a family but given what we paid (over 10k) and what we were told the cruise would be like, we did not get our money's worth and we will probably go back to Celebrity to the newer ships when my kids are older or try a new RCCL cruise. We are undecided.

[Biker19]

Welcome to CC.

[AUDRAA928]

Thank you! I typically do not post on sites like this but a friend of mine who cruises very often told me I should given the experience I had.

[setsail]

Can you give us the cabin # for that 2 bedroom GS, thanks

[mjkacmom]

Just a FYI, some of RCL ships have splash areas, DCL ships have splash areas, none of the other lines even have splash areas, and even DCL doesn’t have baby pools. I’ve also never heard of cribs being provided, just pack and plays. I have kids, but I didn’t cruise with them until they were all potty trained and old enough for the kids clubs, not worth it to me. I’m sorry you were surprised at the lack of things to do for toddlers. I’m guessing this ship didn’t have a nursery? Most don’t.

[AUDRAA928]

the cabin was 9694

[AUDRAA928]

This ship did not have a nursery only a camp for 3 years old and up. I was told a crib not a "play yard" as they called it when I got there. Had I known I would have brought my pack and play which is MUCH bigger.

[voyager70]

Sorry you had such a bad experience. I have to admit that dirty phone cord was disgusting - no excuse for that.

[AUDRAA928]

I hope to give the newer ships a try in the future and when my kids are older! Yes, the dust in the phone cord was discovered towards the end of the trip and that put me over the edge!

[Thorben-Hendrik]

Waiting for the FAN-BOYS! (y)

[NateUpNorth]

Thanks for the review, it was very balanced and seems fair.

Many of the issues you have brought up seem to be fairly common, please make sure to fill out your survey with comments when you get it. (I see you do plan to write a letter)

[AUDRAA928]

Thanks, and for next time, I know what to ask and what to look for when booking. Experience is knowledge!

 

Yes, the letter had already been sent I have a name and contact of someone who wants to speak to me personally. I also filled out the survey.

[ONECRUISER]

Sorry, I'd been upset about not clean room but phone call "should" take care of that. Agree, that's gross. Rooms have coolers, not Refrigerators. They are not designed keep things cold, just cool as they were put on ships originally for pop/snaks to purchase. Crib, they are all designed like a pack and play, small to fit in the mostly small rooms. Unfortunately when you sail during peak family months, lot of kids on board limits babysitting services and Kids programs, ends up being first come first serve. Newer ships have more for kids to do including splash pads. small pools for kids not toilet trained... Single parent, Father here. Traveled when kids were 2/4, 5/7, and 9/11 yr olds, always cruised during off seasons like Labor Day-Oct or in Feb, was less kids, mine got better service and cruises were cheaper. Lot of this doesn't help you now but hope you have better vacation in the future

[actuarian]

We were on Adventure of the Seas from July 6-13 2018.

 

 

Cabin: We had the Grand Suite - 2 bedroom. We have traveled Celebrity on OLDER ships and the Royal Suite was 100 times better than what we had on RCCL.

 

CONCIERGE service is a joke and non-existent. Mine was not helpful at all. Do not count on private babysitting services after hours in your room, they made it sound like it was a service. IT IS NOT !!! The crew does this on their own time. I called twice and was told NO twice. My husband and I did not go out once together in 7 days. I was totally misled. Guest Services was just as bad. I didn't find them helpful and the lines were always long.

 

Windjammer was just OK. Finding a high chair for the baby was a challenge EVERYDAY. It was so crowded on sailing days that we went to the dining room to feel a more civilized. They would rope off a section of the buffet which made no sense !!! Lacked waiter service and you cannot get your own drinks, you need to walk up to the drink area and someone will hand you what you want. I could not even get my own cup of coffee, I had to wait on line for coffee !!!! It also lacked waiter service in the morning and dishes would pile up.

 

 

Thank you for the very helpful review. However, I do not think it is really fair to compare a Celebrity RS with an RCI 2 bedroom GS. The rooms are similar in size (561 sq. ft vs 538 sq. ft) but the Celebrity RS is much more luxurious and comes with many more perks. You usually save money by booking an RCI 2 bedroom GS instead of a Celebrity RS but you get what you pay for.

 

I do agree that RCI Windjammer buffets are often overcrowded and RCI is always roping off sections of the buffet for very little reason.

 

I am surprised that anyone told you that private babysitting services after hours in your room was "a service". I have never heard this before and most (if not all) crew members have duties assigned at all times and cannot be in your room.

[setsail]

the cabin was 9694

 

Thanks, I see that cabin sleeps 8, did you get any pushback from Royal booking it for 4

[Ashland]

Also so sorry you had this experience.....but with children that age it would have been a priority to make sure the RCI ship I was sailing on had the Nursery.

 

It's always been a pack-n-play...not sure who told you it would be a crib .... they were completely wrong.

[smplybcause]

Thank you for the very helpful review. However, I do not think it is really fair to compare a Celebrity RS with an RCI 2 bedroom GS. The rooms are similar in size (561 sq. ft vs 538 sq. ft) but the Celebrity RS is much more luxurious and comes with many more perks. You usually save money by booking an RCI 2 bedroom GS instead of a Celebrity RS but you get what you pay for.

 

I do agree that RCI Windjammer buffets are often overcrowded and RCI is always roping off sections of the buffet for very little reason.

 

I am surprised that anyone told you that private babysitting services after hours in your room was "a service". I have never heard this before and most (if not all) crew members have duties assigned at all times and cannot be in your room.

It's on their website. But it's an as available service as it requires crew to volunteer for it so I'm guessing it's on top of their normal work schedule. I think I saw $18/hr for up to 3 kids. No idea how much of that the volunteer crew gets, but I'd want most of it if I was using my time off to do it!

 

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

[mdsgu]

I'm sorry you had a less than stellar cruise, but I think some of your expectations were too high.

 

I'm speaking from experience -- we have 2 children and have been cruising with them since the oldest was only 7 months old. You have to realize, even if you are in a suite, that you still have to "adult" while on vacation, moreso when they are that young. We've recently hit the "sweet spot" where ours are old enough to toilet themselves, bathe themselves, feed themselves, go to kids' camp for extended periods, and still want to spend time with us. Cruising with children is a completely different experience compared to cruising as a couple. It's not going to be a quiet time with romantic dinners and moonlight strolls. Even now, with a 9 year old and a 7 year old, my wife and I rarely get time alone. I do have to give it to Royal, though -- with Family Time Dining, they serve the kids first and the kids' camp counselors pick them up from the dining room 45 minutes into dinner service so the adults can enjoy a longer, quieter dinner.

[lbjen]

I’m sorry that you had such a disappointing experience. None of the cruise lines tend to try to cater to the under 3s, so I don’t know that it would have been much different elsewhere. Can I also suggest that you try to avoid cruising during school vacations until they’re actually in school (unless one of you is a teacher!). I think that it might have been more enjoyable if you had gone at a different time of year. And be more flexible about when you get to spend alone time with your spouse - it doesn’t have to be dinner!

[AUDRAA928]

I am well aware of how it is to vacation with 2 children and we were not looking for romantic dinners! We wanted the option to do things once they went to bed, together! They go to bed at 7:30-8:00pm. Lessons learned

 

We were told that the babysitting is a service offered and was only told when we got on the ship it was for crew members looking to make extra money. It is $19 an hour and they come to your room and billed to your sea pass.

 

As far as the CS RS versus the Grand on RCL - we were on the Century which is now retired - and it was nicer than Adventure! We now know to book the Genie suites going forward, if we book with RCL again.

[AUDRAA928]

We will not do this time frame again, another lesson learned ! Thanks !

[BecciBoo]

Some of your expectations were way too high. You will find the same situation on older Celebrity ships. Same dust in some places and same chrome wearing off the same aging fixtures I would compare the Millenium class with the Voyager class ships to be fair. The Solstice class would compare with Oasis class. I don't think you'd find those conditions on the newer ones on either line.

 

Those pics were not particularily GROSS to me, "The eye of the beholder" ya know...

 

As for the babysitting, I don't think most people would expect Free sitting...Celebrity doesn't do that. But it is still considered a service that is offered for a fee.

 

But more power to you...I love Celebrity too.

Edited July 23, 2018 by BecciBoo

[AUDRAA928]

no push back at all..

[hapster85]

Autism on the Seas was onboard this cruise. The roped off area in the Windjammer was for them.

[mjkacmom]

I’ve found that hotels will also refer to pack and plays as cribs, other times we’ve been given mini-cribs, never full sized ones. I’ve taken my kids out of school for up to 4 days (including high school) to avoid cruising (or WDW) when schools are out, due to wanting to avoid crowds. We also stay away from the buffet during peak times, and when the kids were little, avoided them all together, too much work!

 

These boards are really good resources (I’d never have known that there is no such thing as a baby pool for diapered kids if not reading it here).