Is this the standard RCI experience?

[Merion_Mom]

5 hours ago, rusty nut said:

I keep hearing this and it has not been our experience with 11 cruises with RCI. I've been on Viking Serenade, Monarch, Majesty, Navigator, Voyager, Adventure, Oasis and Allure. All of them (don't remember Viking Serenade, it was too long ago) had actual working refrigerators. They kept our bottled water ice cold, not just "cool". I'll be bringing a thermometer on our next cruise to document.  

 

 

Better yet, do this test:  Get a strawberry, chocolate covered or not.  Put it in your refrigerator.  Look at it a day and a half later.

 

😮

[ryano]

8 minutes ago, rimmit said:

Every line has something which could be done better.  We have switched gears and now book mostly Celebrity rather than RCI if possible.  With all the perks sales X has, it tends to be a much better value than RCI.  If you watch the prices closely they can be as cheap if not cheaper than RCI and they come with drink packages and free grats.  The ships are better maintained, service is better, free room service, free on demand movies in the room, and better food.  The entertainment and activities are obviously not the same level as RCI, but in all other aspects i would say X is better.

 

 

 

 

X is where Im looking next in fact 🙂 I want to sail with Captain Kate! 😍 

[rusty nut]

5 minutes ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

 

Better yet, do this test:  Get a strawberry, chocolate covered or not.  Put it in your refrigerator.  Look at it a day and a half later.

 

😮

Yea, you lost me on that one. ❓

[rimmit]

3 minutes ago, HardyVA said:

After reading some of these comments, I’m beginning to rethink our scheduled 12 day  April cruise on Grandeur.  We always sail on Celebrity and have liked the food and service.  Any thoughts?

 

Oh the Grandeur is night and day compared to something like the Summit.  We have been on the Grandeur 4 times l, including the 12 night southern.  I love the Grandeur cuz it’s cheap and only 6.5 hours from us, but the ship is in questionable shape.  The summit is pristine.  The Grandeur is a rust bucket.  The food is just ok.  The service, however, is the best in RCI imo.  It’s a nice small ship.  My wife is leaving tomorrow for a quick 5 night Bermuda on it.   We love the Grandeur, but please lower your expectations and you’ll be fine.  If you are the type of person who analyzes every single detail and compares every small thing, and finds fault in everything (lots of public doors do not close properly, I have never had a cabin yet that all the drawers worked appropriately) you could be disappointed.  If you are more relaxed, and just cruise to cruise you will have a great time.

[Merion_Mom]

13 minutes ago, rimmit said:

 

 

 

Every line has something which could be done better.  We have switched gears and now book mostly Celebrity rather than RCI if possible.  With all the perks sales X has, it tends to be a much better value than RCI.  If you watch the prices closely they can be as cheap if not cheaper than RCI and they come with drink packages and free grats.  The ships are better maintained, service is better, free room service, free on demand movies in the room, and better food.  The entertainment and activities are obviously not the same level as RCI, but in all other aspects i would say X is better.

 

 

 

 

 

I have some bad news for you.  Celebrity cruisers on FB are all up in arms, because the free movies are gone.

[rimmit]

5 minutes ago, ryano said:

 

X is where Im looking next in fact 🙂 I want to sail with Captain Kate! 😍 

 

X has recently tried to implement some cutbacks as well.  Most recently the free on demand in cabin movies.  CC formed a campaign and bombarded their CS sept.  8 days later they course corrected.  They try to remove things as well,  but seem somewhat receptive to feedback.  Their is the great footstool debacle you’ve an rad about in the Celebrity forums as well.  Overall though it’s a definite upgrade from RCI.  We enjoy X thoroughly, but still book RCI if dates or itinerary don’t worn out.

[HardyVA]

I don’t care about the free movies, my big concern is the food variety and quality, and the fitness center(gym).  12 days can be a long time if the food is crummy.   

   Is it true that we will have to pay extra for better food in specialty restaurants?

Edited September 26, 2019 by HardyVA

[rimmit]

8 minutes ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

 

I have some bad news for you.  Celebrity cruisers on FB are all up in arms, because the free movies are gone.

 

We got them back.  😀. Amazing what calling and emailing and bombarding their Gs on the ship will do.  CC was directly credited in a quote from their GS dept as having A part in the reversal of the decision.

Edited September 26, 2019 by rimmit

[rimmit]

1 minute ago, HardyVA said:

I don’t care about the free movies, my big concern is the food variety and quality, and the fitness center(gym).  12 days can be a long time if the food is crummy.   

   Is it true that we will have to pay extra for better food in specialty restaurants?

 

YES.   The MDR is just ok.  I enjoy the duck and braised beef but many of the other dishes I have found not so great.   They have a chops and Giovanni’s onboard.  The gym is a little tiny,  but I’d say standard for that size ship.   The classes get packed though.  The class area is super small.  Much smaller than most.  I normally work out at 6am so I never had an issue getting a treadmill.  You may need to wait 5-10min or so during peak times.

 

There is almost no free food after about 9pm when the buffet closes.  The solarium has a small cafe that has some pizza, nachos, some fruit, and cookies and some other things to eat.  The line gets really long right after the late show gets out around 10pm.  There is also a small cafe that has some small desert type things around the centrum on deck 6.  It also sells coffee.

[The Fun Researcher]

22 minutes ago, HardyVA said:

After reading some of these comments, I’m beginning to rethink our scheduled 12 day  April cruise on Grandeur.  We always sail on Celebrity and have liked the food and service.  Any thoughts?

 

They are far more similar than different.  I wouldn’t worry

 

Dan

[Etta1213]

22 hours ago, sushitex said:

 We also thought that the Windjammer on the Liberty OTS was better than any buffet restaurant on the Carnival and NCL ships that we have sailed on. 

DH and i really love the Liberty OTS Windjammer.

[Tulsacoker]

52 minutes ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

 

I have some bad news for you.  Celebrity cruisers on FB are all up in arms, because the free movies are gone.

and ready that the free totes were not available 

[Ocean Boy]

3 hours ago, KelSny1011 said:

Hi OP..I can't argue with any of your gripes.  All are very valid.  Only thing I can say is that our room attendant has always been extremely nice.  If you have a moment to fill out their survey I would, and I would let them know about your experience with the room attendant.  My friend had a bad attendant on their Alaskan cruise and they actually got a small compensation due to their frustrations.  (not saying that will be the same for you.)

 

I don't know if this helps anyone but we usually grease our room attendant as soon as we meet them.  Doing that we have never had issues with our room attendant. 

I have never done that and I have never had an issue with a cabin steward.

[Ocean Boy]

2 hours ago, The Fun Researcher said:

 

They are far more similar than different.  I wouldn’t worry

 

Dan

That has been my experience though I have not sailed Celebrity in the past few years as I prefer RCI's ships.

[John&LaLa]

2 hours ago, ryano said:

 

X is where Im looking next in fact 🙂 I want to sail with Captain Kate! 😍 

 

Good prices next September 😉

[vacationlover_mn]

2 hours ago, rusty nut said:

Yea, you lost me on that one. ❓

They mold.  We’ve had that happen on 2 cruises.  Fridges aren’t cool enough to keep chocolate strawberries from molding in 1.5 days

[molsonschooner]

34 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

I have never done that and I have never had an issue with a cabin steward.

neither have we. 

[bonsai3s]

3 hours ago, rimmit said:

 

After the great service charge debacle in 2017,  we decided to branch back out onto other lines after deciding to commit almost exclusively to RCI in 2009.  We are Diamond Plus on RCI,  but due to all the cutbacks decided to go back into the dating pool so to speak.

 

Since they instigated the 7.95 surcharge, we have been back to Disney, Celebrity, NCL, and tried out an AI plus some independent traveling.  

 

The AI we went to,  which was Secrets The Vine in Cancun.  Including flights it was much cheaper than the price for a 7 night cruise with a drink package without flights.   The service was incredible.  The room massive and pristine.  Food notably better.  Really better in all aspects except that the resort doesnt travel and the evening entertainment leaves much to be desired.

 

If all you want to do is sit around and drink and sun bathe and don’t care about activities and entertainment AI we went to can’t be beat. 

 

Every line has something which could be done better.  We have switched gears and now book mostly Celebrity rather than RCI if possible.  With all the perks sales X has, it tends to be a much better value than RCI.  If you watch the prices closely they can be as cheap if not cheaper than RCI and they come with drink packages and free grats.  The ships are better maintained, service is better, free room service, free on demand movies in the room, and better food.  The entertainment and activities are obviously not the same level as RCI, but in all other aspects i would say X is better.

 

 

 

 

Agree...we sail both Celebrity and RCCL. 

Also nice to have that reciprocal perks.

To the OP...thanks for the review...but...as some already said...a little research on your part could've eliminated some of your problems.

[Grandma Dazzles]

*

3 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

I have never done that and I have never had an issue with a cabin steward.

 

I have never had a problem with cabin stewards either. I find some are “more chatty” than others, but all do their job. I posted earlier when responding to original poster who said her husband was very messy.  Poster said her husband tended not to use garbage cans and just dropped garbage, and left stuff out - again, not defending steward, but sounds like they might have been difficult customers. Stewards are not personal servants.  I also have always thought the stewards were instructed not to move/touch too much personal stuff. OP disagreed and said stewards had always picked up all their stuff. So many people are quick to blame stewards for theft. 

[ryano]

17 hours ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Good prices next September 😉

 

[pcur]

On 9/25/2019 at 8:41 AM, amandaepperson21 said:

Just back from our first RCI cruise. Freedom of the seas out of San Juan (with the key). We aren’t brand loyalists. We’ve cruised on Princess, MSC, Costa, Carnival and now RCI. 

 

After hearing people rave for years about how much better it is than other lines, I had certain expectations. But in all honesty, our experience was just okay. 

 

Heres a quick list of the better/not as good experiences we had: 

 

Better: 

 

1. They didn’t care if we brought back on large quantities soda or juice from port - like two full size bottles of juice or a 2L of Pepsi. 

 

2. Actual lifeguards at all pools. I’ve never seen this on a ship before. 

 

3. Kids life vests available at the pools. Major plus!! We didn’t bring our kids this time, but we always have to bring their life vests. 

 

4. The layout of the ship is soooo awesome. Everything is together and easy to find. Plenty of elevators. It didn’t feel like a huge ship. 

 

5. VERY food allergy friendly!! I was not cross contaminated once! Someone at my table couldn’t have gluten. They presented her with the next days menu each night so that it could be cooked separately. They also gave her GF bread each night. And there’s a GF buffet section. Never seen this before. Excellent. I’m cross contaminated with my allergen almost every time I dine out, but was not on the ship. 

 

6. Embarkation with The Key was crazy fast. We brought our bags to lunch in the MDR and our room was ready when we were done. 

 

7. Self disembark was a snap. 

 

8. No mystery smells, even on deck 1. Almost every ship I’ve been on has an area with a weird smell lol. 

 

Not as good: 

 

1. The food. We ate in the dining room all but one night. The food was okay. Desserts were VERY meh. Creme brûlée top layer was liquid, not that normal hard shell. I only took 1-2 bites of dessert every night because it was just meh. Sometimes even gross. Entrees were meh to okay. Escargot was fantastic though. Dining room breakfast was limited and meh. Buffet has more options, but they were again meh. Only 2-3 foods on the whole cruise made me say, “Wow this is so good!” I ordered steak twice and it was over cooked both times. 

 

2. Restaurant service was slow. We were often the last ones out of the place. Long waits for drink refills. Long waits between courses. During our Chops key lunch, the service was just plain ridiculous. We had our appetizer before the appropriate server even came by to take our drink order. On that note, our Chops meal was of quality I’d expect in the main dining room - just okay. I’m a steak connoisseur and was not impressed. It was also over-cooked.   

 

3. WiFi in our cabin was a joke. We own a business and check in daily. I’d much rather do this from my room than a public space. Unlimited WiFi was the biggest reason we purchased the key. 

 

3. Cabin steward bombed. Sand in our sheets most nights due to her not changing them. I kept stacking our dirty room glasses so they’d be swapped out - she just rinsed them in the sink and put them back. I know because they still had lipstick on them. Minimal tidying. 

 

4. Cabin was not great. You could see the dips in the mattresses when the bed was made. It was so hard my hips and shoulders hurt in the morning (side sleeper). No bath robe. Refrigerator didn’t work. Shower head was possessed. The bath towels were good though. 

 

5. Towel exchange stinks. Cabin stewards swapped them out on every other cruise I’ve been on. Ours just folded the soggy things and stacked them in the floor. The towels themselves were pretty sad and desperately need to be replaced. All of them. 

 

6. Lots of nickel and diming. Room service is usually free + tip on cruises, but not on this one.  The bar mixed drinks were expensive compared to other ships. $9-10 including gratuity for the daily drink special, which is usually cheaper. Also the daily drinks didn’t come in cute souvenir cups or anything. I don’t mind paying extra (hello I purchased The Key) but the extras on this ship were priced higher than most. 

 

7. Limited hours for ice skating and flow rider. Long lines when it was open. The Key only had one designated hour each for these on our one sea day. 

 

8. NO LAUNDRY. WHAAAAT!? This ship departs from San Juan PR, which means most people arrive the day before the cruise, aren’t hauling massive amounts of luggage (which I am guilty of when we drive to FL for cruises) and might be staying a day or more after the cruise. Lots of laundry. Why on God’s green earth are there not at least a few guest laundry facilities on the ship??? Oh but of course you can pay $$$ to have your laundry done lol. We did this trip with one carry on and one personal item because I had planned to do laundry on the ship. After numerous cruises, I’ve never been on a ship that doesn’t have a laundry facility for passengers. 

 

9. Limited food options without paying extra. IMO there’s no reason Johnny rockets shouldn’t be included in the cruise fare. I mean, burgers are on the buffet. Maybe charge for shakes. Other ships we’ve sailed offer more than MDR, pizza/cafe and buffet. That’s all that’s included on Freedom. Others have at least 1-2 options that were premium on this ship. MSC Divina has an American style sports bar with full menu and a burger/brat/dawg place beside the pool. At the Divina pizza place by the pool, they’d cook whatever pizza you wanted on the spot - you didn’t have to pick from whatever 3 were in the warmer. All these are included in cruise fare. 

 

There were a lot of other things where I’ve had better experiences elsewhere. Like medical, they didn’t call to check on me after my visit (unrelated to the ship) the way Princess did when my daughter broke her arm (and they called once or twice daily!). Slow drink service at the pools. We were booted from the pool for having a drink but two other people holding the exact same cup weren’t. Nightclub didn’t open until 11pm or later each night. Smoking section beside main pool (should be by adult pool at best). The ship is going to dry dock soon and it is definitely needed. No nightly chocolates on the pillows (smh even Carnival does this). Little touches. 

 

This post is not to dog RCI because we did very much enjoy our cruise!! I’m just wondering if this is the norm for this line. Thus far, MSC has been our favorite (and they are expanding their Caribbean itineraries). If our experience with RCI is par for the course, IMO it’s not worth the premium rate. 

This sounds like a combination homework and ship problem.  Many of the things you mentioned would be available here on CC so there wouldn't be any surprises.  RCCL has never had a self-serve laundry, for instance. 

 

The Freedom is just not a favorite of ours.  I suspect it's sort of a "training" ship, so you don't get the best, experienced crew.

 

I'd try a few of RCCL's other ships, and most passengers love the smaller ones:  Vision, Jewel, Rhapsody, Serenade.

[JupiterTwo]

 

Deleted.

Edited September 27, 2019 by JupiterTwo

[Denise Ann]

On 9/26/2019 at 2:11 PM, actuarian said:

Sister Cruise line Celebrity still has chocolates on pillows (or at least it did last time I cruised Celebrity last March).  Disney still has them too but most mainstream cruise lines are phasing them out and actually for a good reason.  I think the majority of people never ate the chocolates because it is almost impossible to be hungry at bedtime on a cruise ship.  My wife and I were on a Disney cruise last month and, at the end of the cruise, we still had all the chocolates they had placed on the pillows each night.  I left them all in the room since I did not want to take them through customs.  Perhaps, the room attendant enjoyed them?

 Thank you for the update. But I was answering the OP question about Royal ships.

[kateg]

We have only been on Celebrity, NCL and Royal.  My kids love the Oasis class ships on RCI.  The food is average I agree, but when my kids are happy my husband and I are happy.  I think the shows and entertainment on the Oasis class are better than any ship we have been on. They have so many activities and we love the different neighborhoods.  Its an adventure just to walk around at night.   I also think the itinerary and class of ship and the level of room (suite vs non-suite) can make a big difference in your experience.  Celebrity was pretty boring but we were in Alaska so we soaked in the scenery.  The food was great but we were in a suite-so we got to eat in the suite only restaurant.  For NCL we were in a suite -I don't think I would enjoy NCL if I was in a standard room.  We enjoy Royal without upgrading rooms or dining-so that makes a difference for us too.

[frank808]

On 9/25/2019 at 5:41 AM, amandaepperson21 said:

We aren’t brand loyalists. We’ve cruised on Princess, MSC, Costa, Carnival and now RCI. 

 

8. NO LAUNDRY. WHAAAAT!? This ship departs from San Juan PR, which means most people arrive the day before the cruise, aren’t hauling massive amounts of luggage (which I am guilty of when we drive to FL for cruises) and might be staying a day or more after the cruise. Lots of laundry. Why on God’s green earth are there not at least a few guest laundry facilities on the ship??? Oh but of course you can pay $$$ to have your laundry done lol. We did this trip with one carry on and one personal item because I had planned to do laundry on the ship. After numerous cruises, I’ve never been on a ship that doesn’t have a laundry facility for passengers. 

 

This post is not to dog RCI because we did very much enjoy our cruise!! I’m just wondering if this is the norm for this line. Thus far, MSC has been our favorite (and they are expanding their Caribbean itineraries). If our experience with RCI is par for the course, IMO it’s not worth the premium rate. 

Just wondering, where are the self serve laundry facilities on MSC Davina?