Do CD's really impact your cruise experience?

[motheroftwocats814]

We are pretty avid cruisers and of all the cruises we have been on I can remember about 3-4 CD's names.

Other cruises I don't recall EVER seeing the CD or hearing any announcements from them.

Does the CD make an impact on your cruise experience?

It certainly doesn't for us.

 

[OCSC Mike]

Not anymore. We used to go to more shows & events and would see the CD more often, not that he played a huge role anyway. I couldn't tell you hardly anything about the CD from 2 weeks ago.

 

There are always exceptions of course. The CD we had before that was very memorable, not only b/c we thought he was great, but we knew he lived very close to us and my wife actually had a connection to his family outside of cruising. That's a pretty unique circumstance though.

[RFerrington]

8 minutes ago, motheroftwocats814 said:

We are pretty avid cruisers and of all the cruises we have been on I can remember about 3-4 CD's names.

Other cruises I don't recall EVER seeing the CD or hearing any announcements from them.

Does the CD make an impact on your cruise experience?

It certainly doesn't for us.

 

Great question.

 

This is one of the great mysteries of blogging (to me).  So many people seem to have such interest in who the CD is and I couldn’t give a rat’s a$$ about who the CD is on my sailing.  It makes -0- difference to my enjoyment level.  Maybe others are more into the entertainment options than we are.  We’ve seem all of the big production shows so we rarely go anymore and the headliner shows are very “meh”.  No disrespect to those who DO care - but we are not among them.

[Billy Baltic]

4 minutes ago, RFerrington said:

Great question.

 

This is one of the great mysteries of blogging (to me).  So many people seem to have such interest in who the CD is and I couldn’t give a rat’s a$$ about who the CD is on my sailing.  It makes -0- difference to my enjoyment level.  Maybe others are more into the entertainment options than we are.  We’ve seem all of the big production shows so we rarely go anymore and the headliner shows are very “meh”.  No disrespect to those who DO care - but we are not among them.

+1. I never know who the CD is unless their style is very annoying. 

[broadwaybaby123]

Yes. I'm an Activity Director for Retirees. I do their job on land, so I use them as my muse. 

 

I buddy up to them and say "Got any tips?" 😀 

 

Oh and I steal their ideas for activities! 

[wingatesl]

Not in the slightest. Just like the captain has never impacted our cruising. Now I guess if we are ever on a ship that runs aground, I can change that statement. 

[homedepot124]

The CD can make a huge difference when you have a great one like John Blair - and his wife Katrina.  They are heads and shoulders above all of the other CD's.  And John is the only CD we have seen recently who actually does a show on the ship with his Neil Diamond show.  The only other one I can remember who actually did a show was John Gresham on Celebrity with his Eagles show. 

[Aquahound]

CDs aren't just what you see on stage.  If you enjoyed the entertainment, events, and activities on your cruise, then the CD did have an impact.

[DonnaK]

We've had some dynamic CDs.  On our last cruise, Mike Whitte seemed to be everywhere, warming up the crowd, and even joined the Classic Rock tribute band on a few tracks!   Dru Pavlov would host special activities, such as Seinfeld, Friends and Sports trivia, complete with fun re-enactments of classic scenes.  Dynamic CDs also schedule extra live music, such as having the headline musical act perform a bonus show in a smaller venue, or have the featured singers of the production shows perform their own acts.  We enjoy participating in activities such as trivia and live music, and really appreciated having these additional special activities to attend.     There was always something going on that we wanted to do, and we would move from venue to venue throughout the evening.

 

On the other hand, we've been on cruises where their seemed to be nothing to do, lounges empty for long periods of time in the evening, activities felt "old" and lackluster.  Boring and ineffective cruise directing, for sure.  

[John&LaLa]

I did a thread about this once

 

 

[time4u2go]

26 minutes ago, Aquahound said:

CDs aren't just what you see on stage.  If you enjoyed the entertainment, events, and activities on your cruise, then the CD did have an impact.

I was thinking the same thing.  It's not just about how they look/sound/act.  It's also about the overall entertainment on the ship, which they are responsible for.

[DonnaK]

I want to add that we have been on cruises where the weather was bad.  All the outdoor venues were closed, which resulted in an influx of people crowding the indoor areas.  A dynamic CD would scramble to add activities to positively occupy the people and spread them throughout the ship, alleviating some of the crowding, so even those who don't partake in the activities reap the benefit.  Under less effective CDs, a bunch of bored people wander about the ship aimlessly when the weather is too cold, rainy, windy, etc, for the pool, flowrider and other outdoor venues to be available.

[rolloman]

Some CD's do make the cruise more enjoyable, especially if you attend some of the activities around the ship which the CD is a part of. When we are not on a cruise we often think back to a previous cruise and remember some of the tag lines CD's have used in the past and some of their antics which we found humorous.   However,  "for example"  if you sit by the pool and drink beer all day... the CD probably is going to have zero impact on your cruise. 

[motheroftwocats814]

1 hour ago, RFerrington said:

Great question.

 

This is one of the great mysteries of blogging (to me).  So many people seem to have such interest in who the CD is and I couldn’t give a rat’s a$$ about who the CD is on my sailing.  It makes -0- difference to my enjoyment level.  Maybe others are more into the entertainment options than we are.  We’ve seem all of the big production shows so we rarely go anymore and the headliner shows are very “meh”.  No disrespect to those who DO care - but we are not among them.

Agreed.

[jeh10641]

I have been on a few cruises. I cannot name one cruise director. I can say that I have never been bored or without any activity to do. They must have been doing something right. I do not know the name of a single captain who "drove" my cruise ships. However, they all got me home safely even during a Caribbean hurricane in 1989. Missed few if any ports but did have some change due to political unrest or COVID. I do remember the names of a couple of staff who served me well. 

 

Jim

[Eddie Wilson]

I believe the CDs had a greater exposure to passengers back in the 80s, 90’s but as the ships grew larger, they are seen less and less. 

 

When Love Boat was on air, the CD Julie was of course on a first name basis with each passenger, and the bartender (can’t recall the name) was the only one on board being that he worked every bar.  Plus everyone had dinner with the Captain.

 

After seeing Love Boat, everyone wanted to see/meet their cruises equivalent to Julie.  But the ships were 1,200 people, so it was possible.  

 

In the 90’s the Mega ships were Sovereign, Monarch, Majesty, with what 2,000 plus passengers. With more passengers, needed more shows, more activities, so one CD was not able to be present at all events.  So less passenger contact and exposure.

 

Now with 6,000 sailing, the CD can be unseen by many over an entire cruise.  To me they have been unmemorable for years, yet I still remember the ones from the 90’s as we were exposed to them more.

 

I think the size of the ships and kitchens is also the culprit for MDR quality going down.  The bright side is more shows to see, more venues or bars, more ports etc....

 

One final thought if you don’t mind, I seem to think they actually had more activity staff when there was 2,000 aboard the Sovereign, and Ship Shape dollars were awarded, than there was on our Allure sailing in March of this year.  I have no proof or numbers, it just seems that is the case.

 

Eddie

[LGW59]

1 hour ago, DonnaK said:

I want to add that we have been on cruises where the weather was bad.  All the outdoor venues were closed, which resulted in an influx of people crowding the indoor areas.  A dynamic CD would scramble to add activities to positively occupy the people and spread them throughout the ship, alleviating some of the crowding, so even those who don't partake in the activities reap the benefit.  Under less effective CDs, a bunch of bored people wander about the ship aimlessly when the weather is too cold, rainy, windy, etc, for the pool, flowrider and other outdoor venues to be available.

Wandering around the ship aimlessly is a highlight of my cruise and it keeps me away from the crowds ogling around the CD

[Ky Bill]

After 69 cruises I can honestly say I don't remember a single CD.  I think everyone must cruise their own cruise which involves their likes and dislikes.  Some people like shows, trivia, name that tune, bingo, etc.  Some people like to make their own plains which maybe reading a book, enjoying time on their veranda, pool, hot tub or people watching.  I am sure that many of the CD's are hard working and make a difference for many cruisers.  Just not this one.

Bill

[HicksRA]

Depends on what you mean by “impact”. I’ve had some I really enjoyed and some I couldn’t stand but neither really had any kind of “impact” on my cruise. 

[cfabar1]

I think they work very very hard to keep folks happy, but what I wonder is how much true “autonomy” they have as CD on the vessel.  I suspect that they have some autonomy, particularly as the cruise is going.  Recently, we were on a vessel that had a show unexpectedly cancelled.  I was disappointed that the CD, or someone from that staff, was unable to replace the production with at least some kind of live entertainment, and instead opted to show a movie.  That made me think that they don’t have the ability to move $$s, investment, etc. around, and instead are mostly there to provide an appearance and make sure the trains run on time.

[rudeney]

I don't remember any CD's except one, because he made a very bad impression on us, before we knew who he was.  His name was Richard (I don't recall his last name, but his first name, or at least the short version of it, fit him well). 

 

After we boarded, we were exploring the ship and walked through the fitness center, where he was exercising on a stationary bike.  It was windy outside and other passengers would come in from an outside door.  He was obviously aggravated that the breeze was interrupting his workout, so he locked the door.  A few more passengers tried to open the door, and another passenger inside walked over and unlocked it.  We watched him throw a hug fit, cursing and screaming and then he re-locked the door.  Later that day, we say him introduced as the CD.  He may have done a good job, but we could not forget that first impression.  

[zeroed]

The CD can definitely make an impact. On Carnival ships they won’t STFU on the PA system with the jewelry sales, bingo, etc. Then they tend to try to be part of the entertainment, some succeed but most don’t. On RC they tend to be less bothersome and more professional leaving us with a better experience overall. 

[ONECRUISER]

6 hours ago, Billy Baltic said:

+1. I never know who the CD is unless their style is very annoying. 

More likely remember Bad ones, though been a while. There was one on Royal that half people Love and other Half Hated. He was talked about on CC for over 10yrs

Edited June 13, 2022 by ONECRUISER

[ONECRUISER]

5 hours ago, Eddie Wilson said:

After seeing Love Boat, everyone wanted to see/meet their cruises equivalent to Julie.  But the ships were 1,200 people, so it was possible.  

 

In the 90’s the Mega ships were Sovereign, Monarch, Majesty, with what 2,000 plus passengers. With more passengers, needed more shows, more activities, so one CD was not able to be present at all events.  So less passenger contact and exposure.

 

Now with 6,000 sailing, the CD can be unseen by many over an entire cruise.  To me they have been unmemorable for years, yet I still remember the ones from the 90’s as we were exposed to them more.

 

I think the size of the ships and kitchens is also the culprit for MDR quality going down.  The bright side is more shows to see, more venues or bars, more ports etc....

 

One final thought if you don’t mind, I seem to think they actually had more activity staff when there was 2,000 aboard the Sovereign, and Ship Shape dollars were awarded, than there was on our Allure sailing in March of this year.  I have no proof or numbers, it just seems that is the case.

 

Eddie

Shoot Love Boat Sized Ships averaged about 600 Passengers. But from my first Royal Ship in 80's Sovereign threw my 1999 Voyager Cruise the Cruise Director(and other Staff) would be standing just inside the Theater Doors to shake Passengers hands as we walked in for the Show. In 2001 on Explorer I got to sit down and talk with the CD one on one, back then Diamonds(Top Tier then) got to meet with all Senior Staff during the Cruise... Agree, back in 80-90's swear there was lot more Activity Staff. Then Room Attendants, 30yrs ago on Sovereign each had 8 Cabins to Clean now they do Double that number, though they had lot more work to do on those 8 then higher number now.

Edited June 13, 2022 by ONECRUISER

[baelor]

The idea of a CD seems a bit confusing to me--RCI is an established company, so surely there are clear expectations about entertainment etc.  I would assume that most CDs, to the extent they appear to be in charge of entertainment and guest satisfaction, do mostly the same stuff.  That is, mostly competently make sure that the entertainment is running smoothly.  Is there really a significant amount of variation on ships with 5k+ people?  That seems odd.