Critique of 2.0?

[WebmasterPete]

Because I only expect them to make up the bed, change towels, etc., what do you consider exceptional service? Ours didn't go above and beyond when it came to our room. We had the typical towel animals, chocolates, shampoo/conditioner every day (except Wednesday), and when he saw us in the hallway, he called us by name. I considered this exceptional. My cruising experience is rather limited, and I know that we haven't experienced much. I would be interested to hear what you've had that is exceptional. Maybe ours was nothing great, and I don't know it

Well, he never called us by name once during the cruise. He was very polite, but never actually used our names - that's unusual. As far as shampoo/soap/etc - he didn't replace them at all - even after I asked. I didn't make an issue of it because I could pretty much open a store with the H20 product I currently have, but I noticed it. He did little to straighten up the room, other than make the bed and clean the bathrooms - that's also unusual based on past experience. Again - none of this was enough to complain about, but on the survey I gave him satisfactory ratings as opposed to excellent.

By contrast in previous cruises, we've had cabin stewards who have really gone above and beyond in making sure the room was not only clean, but tidy as well. We've had stewards go out of their way to engage us in conversation and really make the experience personal. I appreciate those touches and have experienced them almost routinely on DCL. I guess that's why our cabin steward stood out as 'okay' as opposed to exceptional.

 

[disneyholic family]

I will agree with Jeff about the servers. We always seemed to be the last people leaving the dining room even though we were only a table of 4 or 5 people. Our main server was very nice, but the food delivery was slow. I wonder if they have moved some more experienced servers to the Dream. I must say our Palo servers were wonderful. Especially our dinner server. He claimed this was his first cruise as a Palo main server. We could not tell that. Our cabin steward was also very good. After the first day, we got 2 buckets of ice every day.

Kim

Kim's probably right - they've most likely moved many of the best and most experienced crew to the Dream....

 

[Madi100]

Well, he never called us by name once during the cruise. He was very polite, but never actually used our names - that's unusual. As far as shampoo/soap/etc - he didn't replace them at all - even after I asked. I didn't make an issue of it because I could pretty much open a store with the H20 product I currently have, but I noticed it. He did little to straighten up the room, other than make the bed and clean the bathrooms - that's also unusual based on past experience. Again - none of this was enough to complain about, but on the survey I gave him satisfactory ratings as opposed to excellent.

By contrast in previous cruises, we've had cabin stewards who have really gone above and beyond in making sure the room was not only clean, but tidy as well. We've had stewards go out of their way to engage us in conversation and really make the experience personal. I appreciate those touches and have experienced them almost routinely on DCL. I guess that's why our cabin steward stood out as 'okay' as opposed to exceptional.

OK. That makes sense and I would definitely put yours as OK. Our room was always tidy. I would leave a sweatshirt sitting on the couch, and I would come back to it folded up. On our Castaway Cay day I ran back to the ship to grab something and used the restroom real quick. I figured that while I was in there for the 1 1/2 that that would be when Neil would decide to clean our room. So, I put what I thought was the Privacy Please sign out. I didn't realize on the other side it said service please, or whatever it says. I made it out of the bathroom, but about 30 seconds after that Neil entered our room. He felt horrible and apologized probably 3 times after I saw him for that. It was completely my fault.

Every time we saw him in the hall he asked us how our day had gone. He noticed us dressed up one morning and commented that we must be going to Palo and when we returned he asked us how it was.

I didn't remember from last time that our steward was that attentive. Of course, last time we had children with us, and I felt like I missed a lot.

 

[zulemara]

We felt underwhelmed by the dining room server and assistant server. The food delivery was fine. I've always found a bit of a rotation in how long it takes to get our food. Some nights we seem to be first, others we wait longer. It has been that way on every DCL cruise I have taken. Our drinks were not refilled very frequently and I remember on the 2nd to last night, our entire table had nothing left to drink. Really though, I found the servers lacked the personal touch that I felt in previous cruises. They didn't seem to remember little things like what we each like and don't like or what our drink of choice always is. It wasn't until castaway cay day that our server got a little more personal with us during our lunch at cookies. We later came to find out they had not been on the ship very long(which is what I had expected). We didn't give them an excellent rating on the survey. I had a feeling after the 1st night that they must be new and just really flustered with the whole dining experience and were working so hard on the food and such that they weren't focusing on the personal experience.

Room steward was great, we asked for ice on our first day and got it every day of the cruise and he made the room "tidy" as well.

The night time entertainment though....ugh. Before PCC 1.0, it was much better. It just really seems lacking. I think they have moved the time up to 11 from 11:30 and some of what they do just doesn't make sense. Line dancing to AC/DC? Bring back the michael Jackson dancers and use the audience to do the village people routine like you used to! and where's the guys vs girls 80s night? THAT was crazy fun. The 70s night was pretty well done, but having it on the last night of the cruise doesn't seem like the best idea. I'm considering writing them a letter about this because I advertise DCL like crazy to my friends, family, and guests, but it's hard to recommend it if the people I'm talking to are at all interested in night time entertainment. Just my opinion of course.

 

[sandyh67]

I thought our cabin attendant was fantastic. There were three of us in the room, I was the one on the couch "bed" - bed in quotations as it was really more like sleeping on a rock. Mentioned to him that it was not very comfortable and could I have a couple extra pillows to help and the second night he set me up with a foam mattress topper!

My one complaint really is the food at Parrot Cay- this was my 4th cruise on DCL and I can say I have never had a good meal there. Next cruise I will go to Beach Blanket or order room service. They really need to overhaul this menu- that crab dip is so bland, no flavor at all.

Did have dinner and brunch at Palo which was, once again, outstanding! If only I could preschedule this on Parrot Cay nights-

 

[KimStaR]

We felt underwhelmed by the dining room server and assistant server. The food delivery was fine. I've always found a bit of a rotation in how long it takes to get our food. Some nights we seem to be first, others we wait longer. It has been that way on every DCL cruise I have taken. Our drinks were not refilled very frequently and I remember on the 2nd to last night, our entire table had nothing left to drink. Really though, I found the servers lacked the personal touch that I felt in previous cruises. They didn't seem to remember little things like what we each like and don't like or what our drink of choice always is. It wasn't until castaway cay day that our server got a little more personal with us during our lunch at cookies. We later came to find out they had not been on the ship very long(which is what I had expected). We didn't give them an excellent rating on the survey. I had a feeling after the 1st night that they must be new and just really flustered with the whole dining experience and were working so hard on the food and such that they weren't focusing on the personal experience.

Room steward was great, we asked for ice on our first day and got it every day of the cruise and he made the room "tidy" as well.

The night time entertainment though....ugh. Before PCC 1.0, it was much better. It just really seems lacking. I think they have moved the time up to 11 from 11:30 and some of what they do just doesn't make sense. Line dancing to AC/DC? Bring back the michael Jackson dancers and use the audience to do the village people routine like you used to! and where's the guys vs girls 80s night? THAT was crazy fun. The 70s night was pretty well done, but having it on the last night of the cruise doesn't seem like the best idea. I'm considering writing them a letter about this because I advertise DCL like crazy to my friends, family, and guests, but it's hard to recommend it if the people I'm talking to are at all interested in night time entertainment. Just my opinion of course.

I agree with everything my friend here says. Hehe We were tablemates and I think we even had the same stateroom attendant. I definitely agree about the night time entertainment too. I have a feeling some of these issues are being addressed on the dream because they have a whole re imagined night life area.

 

[sshaw10060]

I think there is no doubt that Disney is going through growing pains. It is almost unavoidable when you more than double the size of your business in a 2 or 3 year span. Becoming an exceptional server or cabin steward is a learned skill and takes time. We had superb service this summer in the Baltic hopefully things will continue to improve with time.

 

[KimStaR]

Since I did put my two cents in, I should also mention we still had an awesome amazing time. Ian, who has never cruised or been on DCL before is now hooked (duh!).

 

[YellowMickeyPonchos]

We hardly ever saw our cabin attendant, but now that I think about it, I made pains to put the girls specific toys in their berths and they were always mixed up after he turned down the beds. I was always having to re-arrange them at bedtime. We also never had any toiletries added, but I forgot to hoard - my husband even buys the H2O Marine shampoo at the mall.....

Even though I had a really low appetite from my sea-sickness meds, I used my "food rules" at Parrot Cay the first night and was not disappointed. I used Rule 5 - "You can't go wrong with anything in Puff Pastry". The Sea Bass was super-good. Even my husband - who ate the rest - said he liked it much better than his steak. Richard and his assistant were extremely charming and really made our meals. We invited them to contact us in LA.

We second the quality of the baristas - great folks.

The shining stars for us, however were the Oceaneer Club's CMs. Every single one of them knew our girls' names and surprisingly, the girls knew all of theirs!!!! Most of them won't be able to leave the ship in LA, due to visa and CA state immigration laws, so we won't be able to take them to DL!

 

[nolacindy]

Maybe because it was our first cruise I had my blinders on to any bad things. Im sure on our next cruise I will be comparing it to this one.

We had Alex and Jen for dinner service, both which were fantastic. If Alex thought you should have ordered something else he would bring it out to the table. Steaks on the first night were great, but can't say the same for the cold cucumber soup..ewww, which Alex told me not to order it so my lesson was learned. Thought Tritons was great until I got surprised with a round of happy birthday and a really bad peice of cake . Palo..OMG! We had Roy for Brunch and Dinner (on the same day, I don't think I have every been so full) and he was the best. Last night at Parrot Cay was probably my least favorite, the butter on the steak was weird and so was the mango soup, tasted like a melted smoothy.

Or room steward always seemed to be around calling us by name and a smile, Roger i think. I was surprised to find our clothes folded and shoes neatly put under the table when we got back to the room in the morning and evening. The first day we asked for ice twice a day, extra pillows, extra shampoo and all were brought.

There was a steward on our same floor down the hall that I loved seeing, he had a mouth full of braces and always was smiling! He was such a cutie!

Overall we had a great time, met lots of great people and can't wait to do it again!

 

[ImTooExcitedToSleep]

We had Alex and Jen for dinner service, both which were fantastic. If Alex thought you should have ordered something else he would bring it out to the table.

They were awesome!

We made the mistake of still coming to dinner (to be polite) the night we went to Palo. That was the only night we each only ordered one appetizer and one entree. Alex brought us extras anyway.

 

[WebmasterAlex]

They were awesome!

We made the mistake of still coming to dinner (to be polite) the night we went to Palo. That was the only night we each only ordered one appetizer and one entree. Alex brought us extras anyway.

I'm glad you enjoyed my service! I must admit it was MUCH better than what John had me doing on the last cruise...

 

[jeanigor]

I only have the experience of PCC 1.0 to compare this cruise to. That being said, these are my thoughts:

My stateroom attendant: She was polite, yet never addressed me by my name. She did ask if I would like to have fresh amenities (read H2O product) daily, to which she delivered. (Having multiple teenage nieces this made for a very nice extra.) She did move my shoes alot. And my dirty clothes. And I know there is probably a reason, but she seemed to leave every light in the cabin on as well as the TV. Overall worse than PCC 1.0.

My head waiter: My opinion of Salvio grew over the course of the cruise. The first night, I ordered dessert and he said that I wouldn't like it and brought me something completely different (which was wretched). He just kind of shrugged it off. By the end of the cruise he was having a good time with us and laughing and joking. Our table seemed to always be the last one out of the dining room though. Overall better than PCC 1.0.

My assistant server: Bobba. On the first night, she asked what I would like to drink. "Diet, and lots of it." Well she brought me three diet cokes before the appetizer and then didn't refill any of the glasses through the course of the meal. This was typical for every meal we had (except those at Palo--Petar is a demigod). She did have to step it up a notch for the breakfast on the morning we disembarked. Salvio had taken ill over the course of the night, so she did try to do both her job and his. Although she didn't do it very well, she gave it 200% that morning. Overall on par with PCC 1.0.

The head waiter: I'm not even sure of what his name was. However, I had arranged for a cake to be delivered to our table on the second evening with some special cake toppers. I delivered them to him on the first night and double checked that everything was set to go the next evening. Well the second evening came and went with no cake. When I approached him as we were leaving Triton's he apologized (sincerely, not the 'I am only apologizing to shut you up') and promised to have it rectified for the next evening. Sure enough, as promised--even with a little added flair--the cake was delivered and I thanked him for his attention to making the cruise a little more special. I cannot compare, as I had no interaction with the head server on PCC 1.0, except when he held out his hand for his tip.

The entertainment: I did find the evening entertainment a little lack luster. I enjoyed dancing like a fool for the sail away party. Glad we made the effort to attend that this cruise. I also enjoyed the shows. The Golden Mickey's were cute. Some of the songs in Toy Story ran a little long. Dreams made me not want to go to dinner and see the second show. Overall worse than PCC 1.0.

The weather: Was lousy. But that was beyond the control of DCL or the PodCast Crew. C'est la vie, we made the best of it and still had a blast.

 

[NancyIL]

Because you were on a Disney ship and everyone loves Disney, many of you excused the mediocre service by pointing out that the best crew members were moved to the Dream. Had you been on ANY other ship, you would've posted, "Never again on _____ cruise line!"

 

[mikelan6]

Because you were on a Disney ship and everyone loves Disney, many of you excused the mediocre service by pointing out that the best crew members were moved to the Dream. Had you been on ANY other ship, you would've posted, "Never again on _____ cruise line!"

I've been on LOTS of cruises on many lines, from Carnival to Princess to Holland America Line to Cunard (and more) and the service can go either way. I've had great service on Carnival and okay service on Cunard.

 

[NancyIL]

I've been on LOTS of cruises on many lines, from Carnival to Princess to Holland America Line to Cunard (and more) and the service can go either way. I've had great service on Carnival and okay service on Cunard.

I've been on other cruise lines, too. Some how if DCL delivers so-so service, there's a good reason. If another cruise line does the same, people swear they'll never cruise with them again. My point was - people made excuses for DCL's lackluster service.

 

[jeanigor]

I've been on other cruise lines, too. Some how if DCL delivers so-so service, there's a good reason. If another cruise line does the same, people swear they'll never cruise with them again. My point was - people made excuses for DCL's lackluster service.

If, knowing going in, that there has recently been a large roll over of staff, I would not set my expectations high. My stateroom attendant was new and the assistant server was on her second tour, with this being her first sailing after a two month leave. They both let me know this upon introducing themselves. Everyone has bad days. There wasn't anything that went so wrong it would have ruined my vacation.

 

[NancyIL]

If, knowing going in, that there has recently been a large roll over of staff, I would not set my expectations high. My stateroom attendant was new and the assistant server was on her second tour, with this being her first sailing after a two month leave. They both let me know this upon introducing themselves. Everyone has bad days. There wasn't anything that went so wrong it would have ruined my vacation.

Everyone is new at some point. But if you had been on a Royal Caribbean ship instead of Disney, would you have been so understanding? For many people, I think not. People expect Disney to be practically perfect in every way. If it isn't - there must be a good reason. If it's another cruise line, it's assumed that XYZ delivers an inferior cruise experience.

 

[jcb]

Everyone is new at some point. But if you had been on a Royal Caribbean ship instead of Disney, would you have been so understanding? For many people, I think not. People expect Disney to be practically perfect in every way. If it isn't - there must be a good reason. If it's another cruise line, it's assumed that XYZ delivers an inferior cruise experience.

I don't really find your point all that surprising. To me, however, the point you make has more to do with brand loyalty than anything else (with the target affinity group issue playing a role in it as well). Disney has done better at developing brand loyalty than any other company (even I drink something other than Starbucks coffee at times). It isn't surprising that Disney's biggest fans will tend to put up with something less than the best Disney experience on one cruise with the expectation that next time (and on the whole) the level of quality will meet expectations.

Where I part company with your point is in the implication that this group will always rationalize a less than practically perfect experience from Disney. This is quite vocal group, they may return to WDW and DCL frequently but they tend to speak up (and loudly at that) when things don't meet expectations. Sure, they (we) keep returning but we start realizing we don't have to pay Disney's resort prices or shop in the stores for homogenized merchandise or eat at the sad crab cake restaurants to enjoy our experience.

 

[NancyIL]

Where I part company with your point is in the implication that this group will always rationalize a less than practically perfect experience from Disney. This is quite vocal group, they may return to WDW and DCL frequently but they tend to speak up (and loudly at that) when things don't meet expectations. Sure, they (we) keep returning but we start realizing we don't have to pay Disney's resort prices or shop in the stores for homogenized merchandise or eat at the sad crab cake restaurants to enjoy our experience.

I didn't mean to imply that all Podcast cruisers will always rationalize less than exceptional service from Disney. It just seems that Disney cruisers in general are a lot more forgiving if the sub-par service is received on a Disney ship than on any other cruise line. Just read a few threads on the cruise line board about "DCL vs. ________" and you'll see what I mean.