Are roll calls not popular any longer?

[Smokeyham]

We've signed up for cruises on Oceania and Princess and the roll calls have been very quiet (the sailings are early in 2025).  We also noticed that the roll call on a Cunard voyage that we took was very quiet.  I did a quick search and some were saying that many roll calls have moved to Facebook.  What are your thoughts?

[Flatbush Flyer]

38 minutes ago, Smokeyham said:

We've signed up for cruises on Oceania and Princess and the roll calls have been very quiet (the sailings are early in 2025).  We also noticed that the roll call on a Cunard voyage that we took was very quiet.  I did a quick search and some were saying that many roll calls have moved to Facebook.  What are your thoughts?

My experience (with multiple O segments annually) is quite different.

Despite about 10 groups claiming fans for Oceania on that wannabe social media outlet, all it does is create confusion among competing attempts to do what usually amounts to multiple/anemic M&Gs in addition to the real CC one.

That said, the wannabes have mostly confused the less popular short O cruise participants.

O’s longer, multisegment, and most popular short itineraries still produce large turnouts for the M&Gs organized here on CC. For example, our multisegment Bangkok-Tokyo 6+ week cruise earlier this year had at least four dozen folks at our embark M&G and numerous officers.

All that said, I highly recommend that all O regulars (and those cruisers who aspire to join them) refrain from supporting the usually failing attempts at organizing Roll Calls in general and M&Gs specifically on Social Media outlets other than Cruise Critic.  

[Smokeyham]

10 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

My experience (with multiple O segments annually) is quite different......

 

Glad to hear your positive experiences with roll calls and meet and greets.  I have met some wonderful people through M&Gs and look forward to participating in more in the future.

[MacMadame]

My roll call thread here is kind of dead. But the one I created on FB has never had a single post other than mine setting it up. 🤷‍♀️

[ontheweb]

I have had very active and extremely limited roll calls in the past. The one I am on at present has a good number of posters and a nice size meet and greet set up, but has been somewhat dead lately. (It is an NCL cruise at the end of this month.)

[CruiserBruce]

Its always going to vary. Some are busy, some aren't, some are, most are in the middle.

[Markanddonna]

Other social media are definitely taking over. In the past two years, I have seen more helpful posts on FB. I post on both. This is sad because we have to use our real names on FB and the old roll calls on Cruise Critic provided an array of info and onboard activities. 

 

Sadly, on our last cruise in October, the emphasis was on bringing, finding, and posting photos of found cruise ducks on FB. I really hope this practice ends.

[BklynBoy8]

11 hours ago, Smokeyham said:

We also noticed that the roll call on a Cunard voyage that we took was very quiet.  many roll calls have moved to Facebook.  What are your thoughts?

 

 We have had the 7 last Roll Calls I had the privilege to lead to be very favorable and cordial with participation. The CC'er that wishes to start and lead the RC also sets the tone for those signing on. I do find the forums on FB to be full of information but the RC's are quiet with just " I'm / We are also taking this cruise ". I really just scan the FB Forums for information once in awhile.

 

I find the those signing on my will initially join and then if any questions, we will answer them. Most CC'ers will become more active toward the approaching date of the sailing. But those especially "newbies" will return often with the excited anticipation of how to prepare for the trip, dress questions, shipboard questions and past experiences at the coming up islands/ports.

 

A Meet & Greet are arranged with full agreement. To wish to meet each other after all the on the board chat in words,to see each other in person. On board meeting for cocktails, on tours and in the hallways, this makes coming across each other more pleasant.

 

As mentioned, the RC starter and leader sets the tone of friendliness to want to gather as a group. Cunard On Board Services have always been very cooperative in arranging M&G sites with additional services ex. set aside location and even bar services. I've even gotten Staff to come by and visit to greet the CC'ers and answer questions. Even from the Bridge.

 

I've been blessed to have great groups and even still in contact with many that cruised together again. 

[leaveitallbehind]

This may vary by cruise line, but in our experience, the popularity of the roll calls has declined most notably since the pandemic and subsequent restart.  I also think a big influence also can be attributed to social media groups as the alternative.

 

RCI, as example, used to have a CC sponsored Meet and Mingle that was scheduled on board once the Roll Call group reached 25 participants.  This would be attended by ship staff with little giveaways in a social atmosphere oriented towards bringing that group together.  These sponsored M & M's never formed with the restart and it seems that most people just gravitated to their own planned social media based gatherings on board.

 

But in the day, we met a lot of good companion cruisers through the M & M's, a couple of which have become good friends and frequent sailing companions still today.

[klfrodo]

CruiseCritic itself is dying. I give it 5 more years unless they can make some major changes. They used to be a leader in the cruise community, but other social media sites have aged CC out.

 

Yes, the Roll Call section is less popular than it used to be. Yes, some of the roll calls may still be viable, but those are for cruise lines where the population can barely use a mobile smart phone, let alone navigate all the new social media sites.

Edited November 3 by klfrodo

[leaveitallbehind]

8 minutes ago, klfrodo said:

CruiseCritic itself is dying. I give it 5 more years unless they can make some major changes. They used to be a leader in the cruise community, but other social media sites have aged CC out.

 

Yes, the Roll Call section is less popular than it used to be. Yes, some of the roll calls may still be viable, but those are for cruise lines where the population can barely use a mobile smart phone, let alone navigate all the new social media sites.

Hey now, I resemble that remark!.....LOL  But I agree that the relevance of CC is waning in large part, as you suggest, due to other social media influences. IMO this was evidenced by the recent failed experiment at duplicating one of the other popular social media formats, I guess in an effort to refresh the CC boards experience.  Again, JMO.

[mnocket]

11 hours ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

wannabe social media outlet

Wow.  I know many here are extremely loyal to particular cruise lines, but I had no idea that this blind loyalty extended to social media platforms as well. 

 

That said... I get my cruising information from a wide variety of sources - including that "wannabe social media outlet".  imho I'm finding more and more that FB is a richer source of information and tends to be less dominated by a relatively few frequent posters - however, too many of the moderators there are heavy-handed and quick to censor posts that they dislike. I really appreciate that CC remains fairly lightly moderated and allows conversations to take their own course, even if a relatively few posters tend to predominate. 

[Charles4515]

1 hour ago, klfrodo said:

CruiseCritic itself is dying. I give it 5 more years unless they can make some major changes. They used to be a leader in the cruise community, but other social media sites have aged CC out.

 

Yes, the Roll Call section is less popular than it used to be. Yes, some of the roll calls may still be viable, but those are for cruise lines where the population can barely use a mobile smart phone, let alone navigate all the new social media sites.

I think you are on to something. People use their mobile phone for most things now and CC decided to discontinue their mobile app several years ago in favor of a mobile browser version which is inferior. CC is designed for computers. I can get by on an iPad but on a phone the CC experience isnt very good. I foresaw people would move to social media platforms that have phone apps. Platforms that don't adjust to change are left behind. 

Edited November 3 by Charles4515

[Flatbush Flyer]

1 hour ago, mnocket said:

Wow.  I know many here are extremely loyal to particular cruise lines, but I had no idea that this blind loyalty extended to social media platforms as well. 

 

That said... I get my cruising information from a wide variety of sources - including that "wannabe social media outlet".  imho I'm finding more and more that FB is a richer source of information and tends to be less dominated by a relatively few frequent posters - however, too many of the moderators there are heavy-handed and quick to censor posts that they dislike. I really appreciate that CC remains fairly lightly moderated and allows conversations to take their own course, even if a relatively few posters tend to predominate. 

Blind? Loyalty? 

 

Hardly.

 

Reread my post about the negative/confusing impact of about ten Oceania fan groups on attempts to share/clarify O questions and/or attempts to have Roll Calks that including organizing M&Gs - particularly when they want O in Miami to secure space et al.

 

Fortunately, Miami still gives priority to CC Roll Calls. But, the fear is that, with ten or more entities all approaching them for M&G help, they might just swear off their help for the future. 

 

The obvious efficacious solution is to have all the other social media groups defer to the long established CC mechanism for Roll Calls in general and M&Gs specifically. Then they can concentrate on maintaining their dialogues on all sorts of other O stuff.

As for CC’s Oceania Forum: of course it has its shortcomings. But, it still remains more informed by O regulars and numerous unidentified O staff while barring TA promotion. And the lack of an app is irrelevant since the CC mobile friendly web is actually far more manageable than the desktop website.

 

 

[Charles4515]

25 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

As for CC’s Oceania Forum: of course it has its shortcomings. But, it still remains more informed by O regulars and numerous unidentified O staff while barring TA promotion. And the lack of an app is irrelevant since the CC mobile friendly web is actually far more manageable than the desktop website.

 

The CC mobile web is not more manageable. It is a clunker on small screens. The old app which was based on TapaTalk was much better. I still use TapaTalk on other forums that still use it and the difference is like night and day. And TapaTalk does not have the shortcomings of FB which I won’t elaborate. 

[klfrodo]

58 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Blind? Loyalty? 

 

Hardly.

 

Reread my post about the negative/confusing impact of about ten Oceania fan groups on attempts to share/clarify O questions and/or attempts to have Roll Calks that including organizing M&Gs - particularly when they want O in Miami to secure space et al.

 

Fortunately, Miami still gives priority to CC Roll Calls. But, the fear is that, with ten or more entities all approaching them for M&G help, they might just swear off their help for the future. 

 

The obvious efficacious solution is to have all the other social media groups defer to the long established CC mechanism for Roll Calls in general and M&Gs specifically. Then they can concentrate on maintaining their dialogues on all sorts of other O stuff.

As for CC’s Oceania Forum: of course it has its shortcomings. But, it still remains more informed by O regulars and numerous unidentified O staff while barring TA promotion. And the lack of an app is irrelevant since the CC mobile friendly web is actually far more manageable than the desktop website.

 

 

Considering Oceana Cruises is roughly 15-20% of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings revenue source, And, that NCLH is roughly 10% of the total market share, anything or any publicity any social media site gives them is pure generosity.

It's like me donating $10 to a Presidential election. Very insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

Edited November 3 by klfrodo

[BklynBoy8]

Interesting reading all these responses and what peoples perspective of the strength and expected life span of Cruise Critics. IMHO, CC is doing fine with those I have seen using it and also when on board remarks of those I have spoken too.

 

Special Thanks to CC'ers like bluemarble (John) for all his work and information which is invaluable.

 

One point about Roll Calls on board the ships. We experience only one other Roll Call on HAL - Noordam which was still organized with the staff and directly with the Line. It was not handled by the line itself with a pre-sign up on a board. HAL did a wonderful job even with spacious area and a continental breakfast and some Officers visit.

 

So depends upon the way the Roll Call is handled. 

Edited November 3 by BklynBoy8

[MacMadame]

FB use is dying among young people. 🤷‍♂️ They're all on TikTok and Instagram. 😄 

 

Personally, for an information-heavy forum, I prefer a message board to any of those because info is grouped better and easier to find. It's also easier to ignore discussions you don't care about.

 

I also post on a Figure Skating message board that is still going strong 25 years after it was created. I expect CC to last as long as the owners are making money on it and that could be years from now or tomorrow.

[klfrodo]

9 minutes ago, MacMadame said:

. I expect CC to last as long as the owners are making money on it and that could be years from now or tomorrow.

Cruise Critic is owned by Tripadvisor Inc since 2007. Total revenue in 2023 was approx $1.8B

Tripadvisor does not disclose the revenue or operating costs of Cruise Critic in their public disclosure documents.

Edited November 3 by klfrodo

[Cruzaholic41]

4 hours ago, mnocket said:

Wow.  I know many here are extremely loyal to particular cruise lines, but I had no idea that this blind loyalty extended to social media platforms as well. 

 

Oh gosh, you have no idea how bizarre that actually gets. 😂

[Charles4515]

 

1 hour ago, MacMadame said:

 

I also post on a Figure Skating message board that is still going strong 25 years after it was created. I expect CC to last as long as the owners are making money on it and that could be years from now or tomorrow.

Is the figure skating board part of a business or a hobby? I have been on a few boards that started as hobby or enthusiast sites that seemed to be going strong until they were shut down. Two boards were bought by large businesses and then after a few years they were not profitable enough for the business and they shut down. Another forum the founder moved on and decided to shut it down. Cruise Critic is owned by a large company that owns many travel related businesses. TripAdvisor. The future of Cruise Critic is in their hands. 

[Flatbush Flyer]

2 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

The CC mobile web is not more manageable. It is a clunker on small screens. The old app which was based on TapaTalk was much better. I still use TapaTalk on other forums that still use it and the difference is like night and day. And TapaTalk does not have the shortcomings of FB which I won’t elaborate. 

Agree to disagree.

i pretty much use an iPhone 15 ProMax exclusively for CC and what little of other social media items I occasionally follow. It works fine and is far less “busy” than the full deal on a desk top. But that’s my take.

[Mike981]

There is definitely an ebb and flow on where people go for their information. Just because a site isn't as busy as it was at its peak, doesn't mean it is going to go away.

 

Per meet and greets, they have always been a crap shoot for us. We just had a good one for our last cruise, but it was not because of the person in charge. They showed up two hours after the scheduled time and stayed for a few minutes and left. Not a big deal, but they told everyone they would supply red solo cups to make it easier to know who was in the M&G. Fortunately my wife packed us a couple of cups, so people figured it. When you have M&G initiators that don't follow through, it makes us more likely to skip. It takes some effort to do a good job, I wish people would know that before they start and don't follow through.

[Hlitner]

Before there was CC, we had Prodigy and AOL, which both had active cruise boards.  Before that we had GENIE (owned by GE) which also had some cruise postings and, arguably, was the first of the cruise boards (some might argue it was Prodigy).  If CC fails, there will some other cruise related forum.  Tis the way of the world.

 

Some of us are ancient enough to remember when we 2400 Baud Modems and it would take about 70 minutes to download 1 Megabyte.  Those were the days 🙂

 

Hank

 

 

 

 

[Charles4515]

26 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Before there was CC, we had Prodigy and AOL, which both had active cruise boards.  Before that we had GENIE (owned by GE) which also had some cruise postings and, arguably, was the first of the cruise boards (some might argue it was Prodigy).  If CC fails, there will some other cruise related forum.  Tis the way of the world.

 

Some of us are ancient enough to remember when we 2400 Baud Modems and it would take about 70 minutes to download 1 Megabyte.  Those were the days 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

 

The original social media was Usenet Newsgroups.Before the other ones you mentioned. There was a cruise newsgroup on Usenet. Modems were 300/baud.