Travel plan idea blog

I was on the Sensation and was disembarking in Nassau within 20 minutes of being allowed to disembark. There was quite a line of people waiting to get off. Some passengers came storming back onto the ship and must have been among the first off. They WERE verbally abusive to the crew performing the security check and had to go through the crowd still trying to get off. They made sure their opinion was heard by everyone. While they were addressing the crew, they were yelling so everyone overheard. It seemed they were trying to make a scene and rally others to get rilled up also (which wouldn't take much considering the late departure the first day).

They were yelling negative comments (nothing profane) and wanting to speak with someone. I sure didn't want to be around them and am not upset they got removed from the ship (who wants to be around that on your vacation?). There were many missed deadlines but this is the sea and cruising is not something that can be timed to the second. Your contract states that changes may occur.

In addition, the ship's captain is the final authority but captains are not hired for thier people skills. They are not in the service industry like a hotel manager. I would imagine complaining to the captain would not get you very great results at all.

We are booked on Holland America to Alaska, we just learned early dinner reservation are on 1st come 1ST Servered, I explained I have a Medical Condition and note from the Dr. that I'm not to eat late. The Customer Service Manager told me I had other choices-eat in Lido, room service or pay $20 per person per nite in Pinncale Rest. All Passengers could bring note for early dining, and they can not make everyone happy is what I was told. This is not 5 STAR treatment. Is this a common problem? On 16 other cruises on other lines, we have never had this problem. I don't think we take Holland America ever again.

Have your travel agent fax your doctor's letter to Holland America on Holland's form to the correct department. Customer Service is not the department to handle this. No guarantees, but it is worth a shot. Also, don't forget to talk to the Maitre D', personal contact can work wonders if you approach it with the right attitude. It is true that 1st seating is first come, first served and in the old days before anytime dining options, your Doctors note carried a lot of weight. All mass market cruise lines are handling requests in this manner now, and as more dining options are rolled out, the "problem" will get worse. Be flexible, you are going on vacation so try something new. Especially go for the Pinnacle, it is well worth 20 bucks. If you want no hassles in this area, break into your bank account and move up to a luxury cruise line with smaller ships like Crystal, Seabourne, Oceania, Silversea etc. They still have the traditional seatings and their staff to guest ratios are amazing. You get what you pay for.

Hey Mike

Your advice was perfect. As a travel agent, I couldnt have said it better. In the cruise industry, considering the the direction that mass cruiselines are going in, you will have to pay for what you want. Still...cruising is the best way to travel for your money.

Hey Mike

Your advice was perfect. As a travel agent, I couldnt have said it better. In the cruise industry, considering the the direction that mass cruiselines are going in, you will have to pay for what you want. Still...cruising is the best way to travel for your money.

For C.L.: The cruise I had on Princess offered room service for no additional charge, as well as the 24-hour buffet. The room service menu was limited but the buffet was anything but--had a huge variety . . . additionally, we never had any trouble being seated at whatever time we appeared for dinner. I don't know if others had this experience, but it seems to me that you could completely control your mealtimes in such a setting. Good luck with the next cruise.

Elizabeth,
You absolutely can control your dining times. This is the direction the mass market lines are going as a result of many factors including the aging of the boomer generation. If you have 2000 passengers and 1500 of them want first seating, you have a problem. If the unscrupulous among them get "doctor's notes" it puts the cruise line in a bind, and limits their ability to accomodate those with legitimate medical conditions because the dining rooms have capacity limits. The lines responded by increasing dining options, rather than putting in one 2000 seat cafeteria and taking a whole deck to accomodate the huge kitchen it would require to serve that many people at once. Many many food options and much bigger ships is just the way it is. Depending on you preferences it is either a great idea that gives you lots of choice, or it is a downgrade of personal service. If someone yearns for the personal service of the set dining times with fewer people around, pay more and go luxury, it is certainly worth it.
Please don't view this as a criticism of anyone, or my questioning the legitimacy or anyones medical issue. It's just that it makes sense to go with a cruise line that offers what a traveler wants, instead of trying to force a cruise line to be what it is not.

im never going on a cruise after reading both viewpoints here..... i guess some people dont mind being treated like cattle, while others feel like they deserve to enjoy something they PAID for.

......kicking someone off a boat in a forgien country leaving them to fend for themselves????

if that happened to me... someone would get a bullet in the head

cruise lines are not taking responsability for their wrongdoings.it appears that they are not regulated by the laws of this country and get away with what they dictate. i will never cruise again and will pass on my bad experiences on celebrity to everyone i come in contact with. lets send them a message!!!!!

With all the bad reviews one would think that cruising would be my last vacation option. NOT! I went on my cruise and had an absolute blast! I work in management and I am the person that is to handle customer complaints not my staff. You treat a captain of a ship like an airline pilot. The pursers desk is where you make complaints. Excursions get canceled for various reasons from weather to late docking times. I had a shore excursion canceled because the companies bus was late coming to the dock. We all got our money back with an additional shipboard credit for the inconvenience.

My wife and I have been on three cruises and all have been different. We had a great time on all of them but we liked some better than others. We like Carnival better than Princess but our Princess cruise was very nice and we had a great time.
You have to leave ALL your baggage at home. If you go looking for fun and adventure, you will find it. You are on a ship with over 2000 other people, all looking for the same thing. Accept the fact that you are all about equal and spend your time finding ways to have a good time.
One last thought. The rule of the seas is that the Captain is the final authority. If he thinks you are trouble and you are better off somewhere else, he will make that happen. He has the safety and well-being of all the passengers and the ship to consider. If he thinks you are a threat to that well-being, you are gone. I think that is just fine. He has a huge responsibility on his shoulders. Who am I to question his decisions. Accept that, mind your own business, and focus your energy on getting every dime's worth of satisfaction out of your fare and you will have a great time. My expereince is people who get thrown off ships deserve it. And if you want special treatment- be prepared to pay big time for it.

Don't forget, cruises are NOT for everyone. Not all destinations will appeal to everyone, and a cruiseship is a destination in itself. So if you decide to make a decision with the above comments in mind, it is actually NOT an insult to the cruise industry, it is basically acknowledging you know what you want out of your vacation and you need to qualify yourself accordingly. Good luck!