I Didn't Enjoy Being On Their Ship (Royal Caribbean International)

Member Name: eyedo6789

Product:	Royal Caribbean International
Date:	06/03/09 (54 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A Very Modern Ship With Mostly Good Facilities

Disadvantages: The Ethos of The Ship

I went on a Mediterranean Cruise with Royal Caribbean on one of their mega sized ships last Summer of 2008.

I enjoyed the locations that I visited but I did not enjoy the ship.

My reasons why, there are about 25 of them but here are just some:
There was no indoor swimming pool. All of the pools were outdoors on the top deck and although numerous none were suitable for swimming of proper lengths which as an adult is what I sometimes wanted to do. Also, although in the Mediterranean in Summer, it was often exceptionally windy out on deck making it not pleasant to swim outdoors, especially after 4 p.m.

Most of the excursions and shuttle coach services in my opinion were over priced and/or not well thought out. One example was that the coach dropped us all off at the wrong (grotty end) of Las Ramblas in Barcelona, something which I found out from a friend after the holiday was over, and we only had 2 hours so did not get anywhere near seeing the nice part.

I got the impression that everything was geared up towards maximising the ship's on board takings which I don't have a problem with if what is being offered is being offered fairly.

I am a very easy going person and when things go wrong in a hotel or in a restaurant I always make a joke about it or have a laugh about it and it would take an awful lot for me to make even the mildest of complaints, but on this ship it was very difficult to laugh off the way in which many things were being done and controlled by the ship.

At the Malaga stop the ship managed to not tell any of the passengers that there was a perfectly good beach 10 minutes walk from where the ship docked. Something we found by accident because we were fed up with the paid excursions and decided just to walk into Malaga. We also found a bull fighting stadium a further 10 minutes on which was open for viewing.

The aura I felt on the ship was one of an ultra controlled environment where I didn't feel at all comfortable in respect of feeling constantly pressured by waiting staff into ordering a drink and constantly steered (excuse the pun) towards making decisions that I didn't want to make. The customer service on the face of it was helpful but after a while it felt totally false and contrived to me.

From day one most of the staff were continually saying that if there was absolutely anything that they could help you with just ask. I think what they really meant was that if there was anything you wanted to buy or purchase just ask because as soon as any passenger dared to question anything it was met first with a smile, then with a brick wall of defence and then with ignorance.

I often saw people making perfectly reasonable requests such as asking for a refund for a pre booked shuttle coach ticket because someone was ill being met by a forceful almost bullying negative unhelpful response.

Then there was the Bingo and The Art Auctions. All I will say is that from my experience I would avoid both of these. Please be aware that recognised auctioneering laws are mostly invalid when a vessel is more than 10 miles away from the shore.

I made two separate complaints to the Customer Services desk. Both times I was met with a smiling, consoling face but both times I was ultimately just fobbed off time and time again until eventually I gave up. I wrote a serious letter of complaint direct to Royal Caribbean's offices in England when I got back. I got a simple acknowledgement of receipt of my letter but never any response after that.

I would never travel with this line again and maybe never again on a Cruise ship at all. In hindsight, I now know that unlike staying in a hotel where as a last resort you can at least check out and into another hotel or take your issue up with the tour operator rep, on a ship you are basically captive and can not do much about it.

I would personally not recommend this cruise line and if you have already booked or are thinking of booking I would consult with some people you know for some tips on how to get the best out of the holiday.

Summary: Not A Company I Would Ever Book A Trip With Again