New Poll - Do ya' Muster?

[Roxilla]

On our Coral Princess cruise in Alaska this summer there was a gentleman asleep on a lounge chair right outside the window of our muster station. We all kept looking out at him and saying that he was sure a lucky dog to sleep through muster. We were thinking of "ratting him out" to the crew so they would go make him wake up and come to the muster drill but decided that he just looked so happy just dozing away out there on deck - we couldn't do it.

[curiouscat]

I wouldn't say mustering is the highlight but we do it because they ask us to do it and they are required by law to do it.

 

I was in AC(atlantic city) a few wks ago having lunch when the fire alarm sounded.(it was a large hilton hotel). The alarm kept sounding off and announcing there was an emergency. NOT ONE DARN EMPLOYEE knew what to do... and nobody from security showed up....being typical NY types everyone just sat there.:eek: I gestured to get up but we stayed a few mins trying to get info as to whether there was a real emergency.

 

Finally got up w/our drinks and down the esclator and out to the boardwalk... We ate somewhere else and found out there was no emergency... Moral of the story, I feel a heck of a lot safer on a cruise then in this Hilton:p

 

PS I'm formally a NYer, not so cynical anymore

[DuaneO]

And part of the cruise experience. Everyone we have attended have been useful for the only one reason... how to save your life and the people you love that are with you..

 

[custompcsys]

I think after 45 cruices, I can find my way to my muster station, if need be!!!:p

I've been on a 1,000 plane rides, I dont realy listen to the talk any more on how to put on a seat belt, were my life vests, raft or exits are!

I know I'm a slow learner but I got it!!:D

Rob

have had many cabin stwarts know I was in my room, plus doing b2b in oct. should I have to do twice?

 

I fly 40 weeks a year for my job and can probably recite the safety briefing better than the flight attendants...but I ALWAYS use that as a moment to make sure I check where my nearest exit is. I'm sure you can find your way to your muster station in a well lit, calm hallway outside your cabin. When the poopie hits the fan and the hallway is full of smoke with only emergency lighting on, it may be hard to do unless you've gone there at least once before.

 

Your feeling about it probably comes from the fact that you've never been involved in an actual emergency aboard a cruise ship or aircraft. Believe me, after the first time, your feelings will change big time.

[giggster11]

Some of the fun depends on where you're supposed to report. Sometimes you may get a nice comfy seat in a big venue or other times you may get cramped in the internet cafe sitting on your life jacket. Either way...it's good to know what to do and where to go. Let the drinks flow after that!

[Umbarger]

Always go to muster. We make it fun. It is the official start to our cruise and we love meeting everyone. :D

[LETS PARTY]

I fly 40 weeks a year for my job and can probably recite the safety briefing better than the flight attendants...but I ALWAYS use that as a moment to make sure I check where my nearest exit is. I'm sure you can find your way to your muster station in a well lit, calm hallway outside your cabin. When the poopie hits the fan and the hallway is full of smoke with only emergency lighting on, it may be hard to do unless you've gone there at least once before.

 

Your feeling about it probably comes from the fact that you've never been involved in an actual emergency aboard a cruise ship or aircraft. Believe me, after the first time, your feelings will change big time.

 

1) I know where the exits are on a plane

2)I know how to find my muster station, lounge, wheelhouse, casino, disco or what ever, unlike 1/2 the people on board that went to the muster drill! my exper. is that 1/2 the people still dont know which way to get to the bow or aft of the ship after 7 days, or 10....

3)in a real emergency you may not even be able to get to you room for you life vest..... for that matter you might not be able to get to your muster station(you dont need a life jacket if your getting in a life boat...theres 150 of them in there! your only going to need it if your going over board

while it can be good to follow rules..one still needs to use there head depending on the situation.. its not alway good to play follow the leader

4)I'm not saying that people should not go to the muster dill...1/3 to1/2 will be on there first cruise, some new to the cruise line these and other need to go(I'll be on the golden in oct with grandson on his 1st crusie so I'm sure we will be there!! in dec I'll be on the dawn for the 5th time, if we can aviod it we will

Rob

[chasetf]

I cannot understand why anyone would answer this question with any answer other than the first.

[Cruisin' Chick]

As others have said, always we participate and we feel it's the start of every cruise. When we first get to our cabin, we check to make sure there's a kid's vest; else, hubby gets in touch with the cabin steward immediately so the girl will have it in time. Before the drill gets called, we put them on, take our customary life vest photos in our cabin, then take them off and carry them to the station. After standing in the heat during Carnival drills, it's nice that Princess has them inside. Even nicer when in the lounge so you can sit down (the last one was in the art gallery and there were too many people standing there, waiting for the drill to finish).

 

After the drill, we always wait for the crowd to dwindle and then take the stairs back to our cabin.

 

Besides, you can make a drinking game as to how many people put their whistles in their mouths.

[BND]

Besides' date=' you can make a drinking game as to how many people put their whistles in their mouths.[/quote']

 

That is always a hoot, because for some reason some people just cannot resist it.

[AZbeachboy]

Does anyone remember all their muster drills? January will be our 10th cruise and I tried to remember all of them. I remember the first one. I also remember the last three. But the others are hazy. They have been with three different lines. For those that have drill on the outside deck, it seems all of them were on the starbord side. Has anyone had one on the port side?

[Doug R.]

Im not hiding in the cabin, just staying in the cabin. If I have been on the ship before, I just stay in the room. No one has ever come to check.

 

And what have you gained except for the self-indulgent smug satisfaction of having beat the system?

[mamadot]

This is such a no brainer! This is for your safety so why would you not want to participate? I like HAL when they call every cabin number and you answer! They are organized so that it takes very little time and then if there is an emergency you know what to do and where to go! Safe sailing!!!

[PescadoAmarillo]

Has anyone had one on the port side?

Yes, on RC and Celebrity where they muster in a lounge and then exit to a life boat station and take roll. They announce the entire thing in several languages (if required by passenger population). Hot, uncomfortable, but I find it strangely reassuring that they know how to do a headcount if only because it tells me my fellow passengers, some of whom might be inclined to "stay" in their cabin, have also been educated.

[we2cruze]

Besides' date=' you can make a drinking game as to how many people put their whistles in their mouths.[/quote']

 

 

Yuck, yuck and double yuck. As my mother would have said, "Do you have any idea where that whistle's BEEN!!"

[Minoushka]

When we were on Regal Princess this July we were given instructions on how to jump into the sea with our life jackets on

THAT WAS WIERD

You have to hold your nose with your right hand and with your left grab your right arm so that the jacket does not choke you when it bounces up when you hit the water

Truthfully in my 16 cruises THIS WAS A FIRST and not very reassuring

However I appreciate knowing how to if GOd forbid I should ever need to

[Druke I]

We've been instructed to use that arm positioning on several Princess cruises.

 

It is certainly different positioning than we were taught in the Army, had it been necessary to jump from a troop ship while wearing a field pack.

[curiouscat]

When we were on Regal Princess this July we were given instructions on how to jump into the sea with our life jackets on

THAT WAS WIERD

You have to hold your nose with your right hand and with your left grab your right arm so that the jacket does not choke you when it bounces up when you hit the water

Truthfully in my 16 cruises THIS WAS A FIRST and not very reassuring

However I appreciate knowing how to if GOd forbid I should ever need to

 

Similiar to the way you enter the water w/ scuba gear. Uh, Did they tell you the farthest up you can leave off a cruise ship w/out being shattered on impact:confused: I don't think being 16 or more stories high would it matter what you had on.... SPLAT< Yuck

 

CuriousCat

[CruisinChris]

We don't attend muster in the lounges anymore. However, we know where to go AND we watch and listen to the muster instructions in our stateroom. That's right - it is broadcast LIVE throughout the ship. So, even though we're not physically there we're getting the same information at the same time as everyone else.

[peterv]

And what have you gained except for the self-indulgent smug satisfaction of having beat the system?

 

That is usually enough for me! What have you gained by going to it and hearing the same drivel?

 

Cheers,

Peter

[GrayKat]

We always attend. You know the ones that don't attend will be the first to complain that the crew didn't know how to handle an emergency.

 

Also, I guess I could transfer the logic to fire drills at school. I have been in the same classroom for 22 years. 10 fire drills a year - I think I know where to go and what to do. Guess I will just hide in my room the next time.:rolleyes:

 

 

Being an educator myself, I say this is a very good comparison to go by that I had not thought of.

[GrayKat]

On our Coral Princess cruise in Alaska this summer there was a gentleman asleep on a lounge chair right outside the window of our muster station. We all kept looking out at him and saying that he was sure a lucky dog to sleep through muster. We were thinking of "ratting him out" to the crew so they would go make him wake up and come to the muster drill but decided that he just looked so happy just dozing away out there on deck - we couldn't do it.

 

And for being so polite... he may be dozing permanently on some ship in an emergency.:rolleyes:

[GrayKat]

I wouldn't say mustering is the highlight but we do it because they ask us to do it and they are required by law to do it.

 

I was in AC(atlantic city) a few wks ago having lunch when the fire alarm sounded.(it was a large hilton hotel). The alarm kept sounding off and announcing there was an emergency. NOT ONE DARN EMPLOYEE knew what to do... and nobody from security showed up....being typical NY types everyone just sat there.:eek: I gestured to get up but we stayed a few mins trying to get info as to whether there was a real emergency.

 

Finally got up w/our drinks and down the esclator and out to the boardwalk... We ate somewhere else and found out there was no emergency... Moral of the story, I feel a heck of a lot safer on a cruise then in this Hilton:p

 

 

I was at a Marriott in Hilton Head 6 months after the Star Princess fire of which I was on board... No one paid attention in the restaraunt staff or guests. Even as the fire trucks were coming up the street. We screamed at the staff to get the fricken guests out of the place. They thought we were crazy. I know we overeacted but they have no idea how close they could be to loss of life that is so uneccessary. It was a false alarm. Last spring, we stayed at a Hampton Inn and and another fire alarm went off. They are smart the alarm is so loud that it hurts your ears to stay inside the building so everyone was out of the building in no time.

[GrayKat]

I fly 40 weeks a year for my job and can probably recite the safety briefing better than the flight attendants...but I ALWAYS use that as a moment to make sure I check where my nearest exit is. I'm sure you can find your way to your muster station in a well lit, calm hallway outside your cabin. When the poopie hits the fan and the hallway is full of smoke with only emergency lighting on, it may be hard to do unless you've gone there at least once before.

 

Your feeling about it probably comes from the fact that you've never been involved in an actual emergency aboard a cruise ship or aircraft. Believe me, after the first time, your feelings will change big time.

 

 

Mine certainly did after being on the Starr Princess ship & fire and I did go to the Muster drill as I alway did and will always do from now on.

[NthernLgts]

We attend. I dont look forward to it, but there is a reason for it.