Disappointed in Royal Carribean Special Needs

[hackwid]

We just got off the Mariner. About 6 mnths ago I went thru the special need's department to make either a request for a table for 2 - or to be placed with our guests who have special need's as my wife has difficulty eating and it can cause stares and embarassmnt not only for her but also for people at the table.

I was told several times when I called that this request was noted and that every reasonable request with special need's would take priority. Imagine our suprise when we boarded Mariner and found out not only were we at a table for 6 .. but when we showed up it was a family of 4 at our table.

My wife refused to dine at the table .. as she felt this would clearly affect their "family" cruise.

I immediately sought out the head waiter and also visted the customer service area. We were told that there was nothing they could do that 1st

night but that the next day they would rearrange things so that we could visit dinner dining room.

Guess what? No one ever called us back. Finally I called on the 2nd day and was rudely told that they could not meet our request. I once again visted a different head waiter and asked for help - I could see many open tables as our cruise was about 500 people short.

I was once again told that they would work on our request. I even offered to change to 2nd seating.

The third day - we once again followed up to be told we were denied. No explanation why. So every night we visted Windjammer - and never did eat in the main dining room missing formal night etc.

I am just appalled at the lack of accomodation to try to work with us.

Has anyone else met with this in a similar situation or have any suggestion of who I can talk to about this?

[Coral]

You should try Princess. There are plenty of tables for 2 in Personal Choice dining.

 

We had problems with RCCL with a Service dog. None of the arrangements requested and approved via fax were ready on the ship. While RCCL has a nice disabillity brochure - in reality, their special services for the disabled doesn't exist. We went back to Princess which handles disablities very well.

[CaptData]

You should have checked your table assignment when you boarded. I always do. You would see the Mait'd and he/she would have reassigned you immediately. It is the Mait'd who does the table assigments, not the Head Waiter or the Front Desk. Please, do not give up.

 

Write a letter explaining what happened. Tell them of your orginal request and what happened on board.

 

Please try RCL once more. But if you don't, please, when you board any ship check your assignment between the stated hours (usually 1-4 pm in a Dining Room). If it is not what you requested, explain your problem and they will try very hard to help you. I have alway been accomodated on all my cruises.

 

Sorry for your misfortune.

[~Loreo~]

My advice is bring evidence of your request. Written documentation is always scary for a cruiseline to contradict.

 

When I was on the Celebrity Summit last October, I was told that there was a pool lift at the time of booking. However, when we went to the pool there was no lift. We went to the purser's desk to complain. The purser took note, investigated and ultimately was not able to accommodate as there was no lift on the ship. When we got home, we called Celebrity. After speaking with a customer service rep we received $250 vouchers for a future cruise. The rep said that if we had evidence that we requested this ahead of time (it was not marked on our reservation), they would have been able to do more.

 

So this time around, I made the request for a pool lift when I booked with RCCL. I had the service rep note the request in my booking and send me a confirmation email that the lift is on board and working. Two weeks before the cruise I followed up again to ensure this was still the case. I'm printing out the emails to bring with me. I hope that there will be no issues with the lift this time around, but I'm certain to be appropriately reimbursed if they fail to fulfill my request.

 

My advice to you now is to call the company and complain - this is a lengthy and frustrating experience but they need to know what their employees have done in order to remedy the situation and perhaps give you future cruise credit.

[caviargal]

I am very sorry that this happened to you and I understand your disappointment in RCI. It has been my experience that the service levels on these bigger ships are not what they should be.

 

I most definitely would pursue this with RCI until you are satisfied as this treatment is unacceptable. Did you use a TA? If you did, make them aware and have them assist you. I often go to bat for my clients in situations where service issues or others have compromised the experience.

 

If you do not have a good TA, I would suggest you write a detailed letter directly to Richard Fain and send it certified. Also, fax a copy to the executive offices.

 

While suggestions to try another line or another ship may be valid, that is not the issue at hand.

 

Best of luck and keep us posted.

[DEL67]

I am also sorry that this happened to you and would suggest you write RCCL. However, from my experience doing so, RCCL will most likely not only not do anything, they will also try to make it your fault and then "lecture" you on ship accessibility. I know because I have written them twice: once about a comittment that their Special Needs Desk made and the ship's purser's desk confirmed and the other time with suggestions about how to improve ship accessibility.

 

One suggestion I have for the future is get it in writing - an email will do. And then take the letter/email with you on your cruise.

[hackwid]

I appreciate everyone's response. We did check our table before arriving but believed that it would probably have other people with special need's - so we did not pursue anythng more. It would have been ok if we were at a table for 6 and everyone there was not staring and used to being around someone challenged.

I wrote RCCL but have not received a response to date. I assume it will be the same as on the ship - we have saild RCCL 6 times and will probably do NCL or Princess because of their easier dining options.

Thanks again for responding.

[hackwid]

I appreciate everyone's response. We did check our table before arriving but believed that it would probably have other people with special need's - so we did not pursue anythng more. It would have been ok if we were at a table for 6 and everyone there was not staring and used to being around someone challenged.

I wrote RCCL but have not received a response to date. I assume it will be the same as on the ship - we have saild RCCL 6 times and will probably do NCL or Princess because of their easier dining options.

Thanks again for responding.

[caviargal]

hackwid, I have personally had good responses when going directly to Fain and Goldstein. I am not sure who you wrote or how you sent your letter but UPS 2nd day directly to those two gentlemen is worth the investment IMO.

 

You may also want to consider HAL or Crystal (if the budget permits) as their handling of special needs is far more impressive.

[OracleBones]

We had the very same experience with Royal Caribbean's special needs department. In 2005, we sailed on the Voyager of the Seas and had, for similar reasons, requested a table for three. We were assured in writing (e-mail) by Charles Newton that the request was noted and would be met. To our surprise, we too were seated with a family of five. The maitre-d claimed he had no knowledge of our request and was adamant that a change was not possible. Only through the intervention of a very kind head waiter were we able to obtain a table for three for the second night. A letter of complaint, sent by registered mail, to Mr. Fain regarding this issue and others related to unmet commitments and untimely and misinformation. It was answered by the customer service department. It apologized for our disappointment but went on to note the highly regarded service of the special services staff. The letter stated that my concerns and questions would be forwarded to Mr. Newton for a response. To this date I have yet to receive a reply. So much for the highly regarded service. Good luck with your complaint.

[CruisinOnWheels]

I am not sure if you will get any different answer than you have already...

 

But here goes...

 

Call RCI's special needs department at 800-722-5472 x34492 and ask to speak to Bruce Spitzer... he has impressed me and I have confidence he can get you an acceptable resolution, and please let me know what happens...

 

brian43tx@comcast.net

[leoandhugh]

here's another vote for Bruce Spitzer; we just returned from a month on the Brilliance of the Seas in the mediterranean and transAtlantic. we travel with a go-go scooter and a foldup wheelchair. I had several phone conversations with Bruce long before our departure and reviewed our particular needs and requests. Shortly prior to our departure, I called him again to remind him and he assured me that he had already taken care of everything for us and not to worry. when we boarded the ship, we found that he is a man of his word - everything we and he had requested was done. as represented by Bruce Spitzer, rccl's special needs department is the best we have encountered in over 30 cruises.:)

[StormGoddess]

I know that one of the first things my family does is go find our table assignment, it helps with not only knowing where you will be going during the dining room rush, but to also take care of things in this situation. Anytime there has been a problem, we immediately see the maitre'd and things are almost always taken care of. Especially with a special needs request. I am anticipating I will need to do this on my upcoming, since I have recently lost a good portion of my vision, and will havedifficulties weaving through many tightly packed tables to the back of the dining room.

Don't give up. On any ship in the future, check it out as soon as you can, and then go to the maitre'd for any changes.

Best of luck in the future.

[lvtotrvl1]

I book many cruises that require special needs addressed. Every cruiseline I deal with requires the customer to send a letter requesting the specific service and a reason why. Most times a Physicians note is recommended. When this is done, I have never had a problem. I've never been able to call and request something and be guaranteed it was done.

[LittleBit]

We just got off the Mariner. About 6 mnths ago I went thru the special need's department to make either a request for a table for 2 - or to be placed with our guests who have special need's as my wife has difficulty eating and it can cause stares and embarassmnt not only for her but also for people at the table.

I was told several times when I called that this request was noted and that every reasonable request with special need's would take priority.

 

 

NSome of this may also be with the way your request was worded - next time dont' make it a request, but a requirement. I often get requests from patrons for "special seating" (i.e. an aisle seat, I prefer them myself) but it is treated differently than a REQUIRED aisle seat becasue of a disability.

Semantics? Maybe, but since it sounds like you would have sat at a table with others, the person may have not understood the extent of the concern. (I'm not defending them or saying you re to blame, just letting you know that there aare many ways of interpreting a request..)

 

Did you eat with these other folks that first night? Were they disturbed, or was your wife upset because of it? Maybe the family has someone in the same situation and wouldn't have cared