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SOLARIUM CLOSED FOR ENTIRE CRUISE!


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I get that it sucks that you expected one thing and the cruise line delivered something different, and I’m not defending the cruise line…but you did agree to their contract which states below that it’s all subject to change without advance notice.  Again, I get you’re disappointed but really should try to not let that ruin your trip
 

7. CANCELLATION, DEVIATION OR SUBSTITUTION BY CARRIER:
a. Carrier may for any reason at any time and without prior notice, cancel, advance, postpone or deviate from any scheduled sailing, port of call, destination, lodging
or any activity on or off the Vessel, or substitute another vessel or port of call, destination, lodging or activity.
Except as provided in Section 7.e below, and except as provided in Section 4.e or Section 4.f regarding an actual or suspected COVID-19 infection, and except where a refund is required by law as a result of a declaration of a public health emergency or government order cancelling the Cruise or delaying boarding of the Vessel by Passengers by three (3) days or more, Carrier shall not be liable for any claim whatsoever by Passenger, including but not limited to loss, compensation or refund, by reason of such cancellation, advancement, postponement, substitution or deviation

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16 minutes ago, SpeedNoodles said:

Really? Even if  you book many months in advance?  I guess I never saw anything anywhere on maintenance of anything when I booked Disney 5 months in advance.

Yea I forget where it is on the website, but there is a spot where they post things, not sure how far in advance but for example they’ve had it out there for a while now that the skyliner will be down for routine maintenance for a week in January 2023…I know they put resort pool closures there too

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12 minutes ago, Geoff P said:

I get that it sucks that you expected one thing and the cruise line delivered something different, and I’m not defending the cruise line…but you did agree to their contract which states below that it’s all subject to change without advance notice 
 

7. CANCELLATION, DEVIATION OR SUBSTITUTION BY CARRIER:
a. Carrier may for any reason at any time and without prior notice, cancel, advance, postpone or deviate from any scheduled sailing, port of call, destination, lodging
or any activity on or off the Vessel, or substitute another vessel or port of call, destination, lodging or activity.
Except as provided in Section 7.e below, and except as provided in Section 4.e or Section 4.f regarding an actual or suspected COVID-19 infection, and except where a refund is required by law as a result of a declaration of a public health emergency or government order cancelling the Cruise or delaying boarding of the Vessel by Passengers by three (3) days or more, Carrier shall not be liable for any claim whatsoever by Passenger, including but not limited to loss, compensation or refund, by reason of such cancellation, advancement, postponement, substitution or deviation

In my opinion by going out of your way to put that up, you are defending them. I can see the port thing or anything related to weather. However, being to greedy to take ships out of service more often for this kind of work is no more then a loop hole. Greed and lack of care for customers.

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12 minutes ago, CanHardlyWait said:

In my opinion by going out of your way to put that up, you are defending them. I can see the port thing or anything related to weather. However, being to greedy to take ships out of service more often for this kind of work is no more then a loop hole. Greed and lack of care for customers.

That’s your opinion and you’re entitled to it, I saw your post and was genuinely curious to see if it was in there as a notice, and it is, so I figured I’d share as others may like to know for next time as well

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14 minutes ago, Geoff P said:

That’s your opinion and you’re entitled to it, I saw your post and was genuinely curious to see if it was in there as a notice, and it is, so I figured I’d share as others may like to know for next time as well

I get that. Just please tell me you see it as the get out of jail free loop hole it is? Thanks.

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I see both sides.

It’s possible that this was a planned repair, but I could totally see it was a last minute thing that was handed down from the top.
 

Either way, I think things definitely could have been improved if they were more up front about it from the beginning and provided alternatives. Like I’ve been on ships where the running water went down for a few hours but they constantly updated us and gave everyone access to bottled water free of charge. Luckily it was restored within a few hours and everyone’s dinner time was bumped back an hour or so.

Not being able to access an entire portion of the ship for the entirety of the cruise is probably less severe than no running water but probably more so than something like a show being cancelled.

I think it is okay to be frustrated by it, but it’s not an indictment of the entire industry or the company.

My advice is realize the situation is out of your control, try to enjoy the trip as much as possible, and if you think it is necessary try to seek appropriate compensation.

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16 minutes ago, CanHardlyWait said:

So happy my genuine frustration is amusing you. I'm just not a sycophant to any big business and believe in holding them 100% accountable for the product they sell me. I truly do not understand the need here to constantly defend a multi billion dollar corporation. They are big boys and can handle everything I'm saying without the little tribe chiming in endlessly.

It's called a "discussion".  It's in a section of a message board specifically named "Royal Caribbean Discussion".  We (the tribe) are just as entitled to our opinion as you are to yours.

I think almost everyone here genuinely understands your frustration.  I like the Solarium also and would be disappointed if it were closed for the week.  I would probably complain also. 

It's a matter of degree.  Allure is well known to be one of the most outdated ships in terms of the last dry dock.  It costs less than Royals newer ships.  I love Royal, but it is a budget line - it competes with Carnival and NCL.  I don't hold Chili's to the same standard I hold Ruth Chris.

 

 

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41 minutes ago, CanHardlyWait said:

So happy my genuine frustration is amusing you. I'm just not a sycophant to any big business and believe in holding them 100% accountable for the product they sell me. I truly do not understand the need here to constantly defend a multi billion dollar corporation. They are big boys and can handle everything I'm saying without the little tribe chiming in endlessly.

You do realize this is a messageboard on a Royal Caribbean FAN site, correct? You really shouldn't be surprised by the nature of the responses.

Best way to stick it to big business is to vote with your future dollars.

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There are many other cruise brands you can pick. If Royal Caribbean disappoint you, then leave them. I have many entries on my banned list, including hotel, restaurant or store. They failed to meet my expectation or did something terrible when I visited them so I just left, never come back. Period.

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12 minutes ago, wordell1 said:

It's called a "discussion".  It's in a section of a message board specifically named "Royal Caribbean Discussion".  We (the tribe) are just as entitled to our opinion as you are to yours.

I think almost everyone here genuinely understands your frustration.  I like the Solarium also and would be disappointed if it were closed for the week.  I would probably complain also. 

It's a matter of degree.  Allure is well known to be one of the most outdated ships in terms of the last dry dock.  It costs less than Royals newer ships.  I love Royal, but it is a budget line - it competes with Carnival and NCL.  I don't hold Chili's to the same standard I hold Ruth Chris.

 

 

Then you are doing yourself a disservice. Hold Chillis to the highest standard they can maintain. Nobody is comparing restaurants or cruise lines. Budget is a Bull ship excuse. To only expect what you paid for when you pay a lot? No way. Hold them to the highest standard. Always. Do you expect good care from your physician? Is he on Park Ave? Always hold people and especially businesses to the highest possible standards.

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16 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

You do realize this is a messageboard on a Royal Caribbean FAN site, correct? You really shouldn't be surprised by the nature of the responses.

Best way to stick it to big business is to vote with your future dollars.

I literally never saw this as a fan site. It's nowhere in the name. I've always seen it as a place to get help and information. And it has. I just don't believe any business, celebrity, political figure etc deserve or warrants endless praise and or defense. They can and do wrong. And I don't believe in cut and run. I believe with enough criticism and holding to higher standards, change may be possible. But first step is not running to there defense every time. Expect more, demand more, and see what can be accomplished. Is that such a bad philosophy?

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23 minutes ago, CanHardlyWait said:

Then you are doing yourself a disservice. Hold Chillis to the highest standard they can maintain. Nobody is comparing restaurants or cruise lines. Budget is a Bull ship excuse. To only expect what you paid for when you pay a lot? No way. Hold them to the highest standard. Always. Do you expect good care from your physician? Is he on Park Ave? Always hold people and especially businesses to the highest possible standards.

I'm curious. What is the recourse when they don't meet your high standards?

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14 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

Absolutely not! Be sure you go through the right channels to get the feedback to where it needs to go. They do read the post-survey cruise comments!

A constructive reply. Thank you. And I will. P.S. You have always been very helpful to my questions in the past and it is always appreciated. Thanks again.

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20 minutes ago, CanHardlyWait said:

If I actually thought you were interested I would elaborate.

I'm very interested.  I always try to understand other people's perspective.  I really don't think most on here disagree with you that Royal did not handle this well at a minimum.

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1 hour ago, CanHardlyWait said:

I literally never saw this as a fan site. It's nowhere in the name. I've always seen it as a place to get help and information. And it has. I just don't believe any business, celebrity, political figure etc deserve or warrants endless praise and or defense. They can and do wrong. And I don't believe in cut and run. I believe with enough criticism and holding to higher standards, change may be possible. But first step is not running to there defense every time. Expect more, demand more, and see what can be accomplished. Is that such a bad philosophy?

I don't even know why you're dragging this out in a dozen posts. Nobody here can do anything about it. Bottom line - if the service is not up to your standards you shop elsewhere. The cruise line is not going to cancel cruises every time they have to close down an area. The NCL Epic is going through the same thing - they've closed down Spice H2o, the adults only pool and entertainment area that takes up the aft area of the ship. And it's very popular. They're giving a whopping $50 on board credit in exchange. It happens.

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10 hours ago, SpeedNoodles said:

Really? Even if  you book many months in advance?  I guess I never saw anything anywhere on maintenance of anything when I booked Disney 5 months in advance.

I think Royal could offset some of the ferocity of complaint by letting folks know as soon as they know.  Even if it's beyond any time when they can cancel.  Gives it some time to sink in for the consumer and while they might not like it when they see it, they've grown to accept it by the time they board and it doesn't drag down the entire experience for some of their guests.

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3 hours ago, GatorCruiser said:

Solarium bistro was closed my entire march cruise on symphony. I dealt with it. It wasnt soul crushing for me like this allure solarium closure has been for you. I will pray for peace in your heart over this fiasco. 

I hesitate to speak for CanHardlyWait but for me, which venue closed is not the point.  RC advertises and provides photos of all the things to do on their cruise ships.  We pay our money for those things, board their ships then find some are not available.   I will not ask for my money back.  But, the old saying, "Fool me once, shame on you!  Fool me twice, shame on me!" comes to mind.

With that said, I'll find other ways to spend my retirement nest egg.

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13 hours ago, SpeedNoodles said:

Really? Even if  you book many months in advance?  I guess I never saw anything anywhere on maintenance of anything when I booked Disney 5 months in advance.

Yes, you can check the Park Hours for the dates you will be visiting and there you will find which attractions will be closed on that day. It has always been like this on every Disney park.

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17 minutes ago, Carlos A. said:

Yes, you can check the Park Hours for the dates you will be visiting and there you will find which attractions will be closed on that day. It has always been like this on every Disney park.

Thanks! I guess people who visit Disney would know that.  I went once, so there's no reason to ever go again, lol.  I'm surprised that they'd know 4-5 months in advance.  That's impressive.

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37 minutes ago, Toby said:

I hesitate to speak for CanHardlyWait but for me, which venue closed is not the point.  RC advertises and provides photos of all the things to do on their cruise ships.  We pay our money for those things, board their ships then find some are not available.   I will not ask for my money back.  But, the old saying, "Fool me once, shame on you!  Fool me twice, shame on me!" comes to mind.

With that said, I'll find other ways to spend my retirement nest egg.

I wasn't going to do this anymore, but you were so on the money. Taking your money elsewhere is a form of holding them accountable. Not endlessly defending everything they do (both right & wrong) is also a start to hold them accountable aka to a higher standard. A large enough, loud enough bark can spare them the bite. (Loss of $$ customer, etc). It's in there best interest as well as ours to not defend and/or overlook/brush off these things. If you actually have interest in the company and want it to succeed, then being hard on them when needed is important. It's about attitude. They clearly decided loss of revenue one week this year (planned in advance like Disney) to do heavy work was not an exceptable hit for them. However, it was exceptable to there customers to do this while operational. That was a mistake. And "they will never shut down a week for work" is not a helpful response. Just because that's the way "it's always been" is no excuse. Maybe it's time for a new way of handling yearly work. It costs money to make money. I believe change is always possible. It just starts by letting our voices be heard. That includes the sycophants. Every protest, evey criticism, and hopefully every suggestion could lead to a better outcome for all. Both customer and business. I don't believe coming back at everything I say with endless excuses and defense of the company is in there best interests. Holding them to a higher standard and saying this is wrong (whatever the issue) is a start to teaching them how to be a better business to it's loyal customers. They can and do mess up often. If you speak about those problems more and defend less, then change and growth is possible. I used Disney as an example because it was my job for 20 years. Listening to guests and working to make things better for them (even if it cost us money) Always, always paid off in the long run. It isn't helpful to blindly defend. It gives a false sense of what is going on to the people that (Can) make change happen. Never settle for "well it's always been this way so..." I genuinely want to see change and growth come from a situation like this one. I truly believe I have said nothing here that will warrant a hostile response. Only time will tell. Please don't. I just know from experience that your criticism of them is more valuable to them in the long run, then your blind and blanket praise.

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17 hours ago, wordell1 said:

Royal Caribbean is not a "top dollar" cruise line.

Subtle classism.

For most of us, it's certainly not a pittance.

The solarium is a huge part of the advertising for RCL... Add another pool closure on top, and then a final sweetener that this is all so that the ship can make a nice debut when it gets to Galveston, and yeah... I'd be pretty upset, too.

It's not just an inconvenience. They're actively robbing their customers today for a marketing gimmick they're unwilling to break their schedule for.

You all should make a mass complaint to guest services and demand to talk to the captain. 

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16 hours ago, SpeedNoodles said:

Really? Even if  you book many months in advance?  I guess I never saw anything anywhere on maintenance of anything when I booked Disney 5 months in advance.

Usually Disney will always post (its on the website, under attractions I think) any rides that will be down for any part of the year, this is also updated through the year - like because of Tron construction the WDW Train has been down for like 7 years now. They also list if there is any refurbishment at hotels on their individual landing pages. There is so much to do in each individual park that if one attraction is down an attraction that just reopened from refurb or is new can take in the extra ride go-ers. I may not be a cruise professional but Disney parks are my wheel house 😆

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28 minutes ago, LJay0301 said:

Usually Disney will always post (its on the website, under attractions I think) any rides that will be down for any part of the year, this is also updated through the year - like because of Tron construction the WDW Train has been down for like 7 years now. They also list if there is any refurbishment at hotels on their individual landing pages. There is so much to do in each individual park that if one attraction is down an attraction that just reopened from refurb or is new can take in the extra ride go-ers. I may not be a cruise professional but Disney parks are my wheel house 😆

But things also close down abruptly on an emergency basis.  Yes they post for scheduled shutdowns. 

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I definately would have been frustrated if this happened to me. I choose to cruise without kids and while I recognize Royal is a family cruise line I enjoy the adult only solarium to relax in daily. Perhaps Royal could have countered this by making one of the other pools (perhaps the beach entry pool) an adult only zone. A little harder to enforce maybe but it would have been a good compromise.

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I'll admit, me and my lady would be very disappointed if the Solarium were still closed on our upcoming cruise on the Allure.  Very sorry to hear that's happening to you. 

We're looking forward to some quiet time on the Allure.  Like everyone else, we paid a fair amount of money to use the ship, including the Solarium - our favorite spot.  However, we won't let a closed Solarium ruin our cruise, as it's beyond our control.  I would probably chat with guest services while onboard and explain that we were disappointed.  Maybe they'd give us a couple of drink vouchers or a some on-board credit for the inconvenience, but that's about as much as I could expect them to do.  Then I would use that onboard credit to get drinks and bring them to alternative quiet places, like our balcony, or Central Park, or some of the decks with loungers hidden at the ends of the hallways.   

If I were really upset about it, I could take the time to write a letter to the company explaining how the experience was sub-par due to the company's lack of proactive communication and bad planning, and hopefully, someone would read it and make some changes to better serve the guests in the future.  You'd have to decide if it is worth the effort for this particular issue.  Depends on how strongly you feel about it, and there is no wrong answer here in my opinion.  But I get it, you're not getting the full experience that was promised, and it would be great to get something back for the trouble.  Either way, it's best to not let it ruin a vacation.

For what it's worth, I could think of worse things happening on a ship.  For example, if a sewage pipe were leaking waste into my stateroom - that's a problem that would need to be addressed immediately.  The minimal remedy for that is to move us into any available clean stateroom, and provide a refund/credit for any resulting downgrade and the inconvenience.  I hope I never have to deal with that, but other cruisers have.

Bottom line though, you're on a cruise ship and most everyone else isn't!  Enjoy!

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On 10/31/2022 at 10:49 AM, Yo2slick said:

The cruise lines lost how much money during Covid and people think they will receive compensation for the solarium being closed.....🤣

We are all lucky to even be able to cruise right now, we could go back to having overpaid politicians screaming about it not being safe to be on a cruise ship and them parking the entire fleet again.

Its not just on vacation, regular everyday life has changed.  Things are constantly closed or schedules changed because of staff shortages or parts shortages.  Getting pissed doesn't change it, it just gives the few people that showed up to work that day another reason to not want to come back the next day. 

Have a drink, eat some cheesecake, enjoy the ocean views and be grateful to have another day!

I'm sorry, but I'm sick of everyone thinking one should be soooooo grateful to be cruising.  When I cruise, I pay for it and as of late it costs me way more than it did pre-covid.  In September I went on a 7 day Glacier cruise that at the last minute the Captain decided not to visit. No bad weather.  Nothing stopping them from going the week before or the week after and NOTHING stopping them from hawking the paid excursions to the same said glacier.  If they had informed us prior to the vacation we would be skipping the glacier...I assure you we would have booked something else.

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17 hours ago, PeloAl said:

Ugh I came to this forum to get away from the dumpster fire at cruise critic yet here we are...🙄

I'm sorry this thread has devolved into this sort of inane back and forth snark. It's the sort of thing we've tried to weed out for years here.

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23 hours ago, NotPayinExtra said:

I would say telling someone else what is or isn't "Top Dollar" in your financial opinion is classless. In my humble opinion.

Royal is not a high end cruise line. Thats not an opinion. There are different tiers to cruise lines just like there are for hotels and restaurants. Royal Caribbean operates three different tiers within their own company. There are different levels of service and expectations on Silverseas, Celebrity,  and Royal respectively. The costs on each reflect that.

I think it is unreasonable to expect perfection from a mass market cruise line.

That doesn't mean that one shouldn't be upset with things that happen on your cruise. It doesn't mean that one shouldn't complain here either as I think we all want to know what is going on on Royal cruises and appreciate hearing the information.

This is most definitely a fan site, as well as a great way for people to gather information about cruising with Royal.

In my opinion, one of the most valuable things to learn about cruising in general is that one needs to go in with an understanding that a lot can go wrong.

Weather issues, port issues, mechanical issues and many others all can drastically alter your cruise from what you booked. If you cruise long enough it will happen- guaranteed. 

Those of us who have done this for a while have come to this realization, in many cases through experience. If we are still cruising its because we have learned to roll with it and not let issues keep us from having a great time.

 

 

 

 

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13 minutes ago, wordell1 said:

Royal is not a high end cruise line. Thats not an opinion. There are different tiers to cruise lines just like there are for hotels and restaurants. Royal Caribbean operates three different tiers within their own company. There are different levels of service and expectations on Silverseas, Celebrity,  and Royal respectively. The costs on each reflect that.

I think it is unreasonable to expect perfection from a mass market cruise line.

That doesn't mean that one shouldn't be upset with things that happen on your cruise. It doesn't mean that one shouldn't complain here either as I think we all want to know what is going on on Royal cruises and appreciate hearing the information.

This is most definitely a fan site, as well as a great way for people to gather information about cruising with Royal.

In my opinion, one of the most valuable things to learn about cruising in general is that one needs to go in with an understanding that a lot can go wrong.

Weather issues, port issues, mechanical issues and many others all can drastically alter your cruise from what you booked. If you cruise long enough it will happen- guaranteed. 

Those of us who have done this for a while have come to this realization, in many cases through experience. If we are still cruising its because we have learned to roll with it and not let issues keep us from having a great time.

 

 

 

 

What constitutes "Top Dollar" is up to the individual. There finances. And what "Top Dollar" is to them. Any comment on what someone perceives as Top Dollar is classless.

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