AussieCoasterKing Posted January 30, 2015 Report Share Posted January 30, 2015 Hi All I find myself in turmoil and hope you can all help me out. We recently cruised on the Radiance and almost left the ship after the first night because the bed was SO bad! Firm would not begin to describe it. On top of this my wife has a bad back. When I was talking to management. Somebody in charge of Laundry. He explained that I should expect a harder (older) bed on a ship of this age. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. After a lot of arguments they were able to improve the situation but it was still the worse bed I've ever slept on and I've done a lot of camping. My question is. What experience do other people have on RCCL ships? Our first cruise was on Allure and that was one of the best beds I've slept on. We even looked at trying to buy one of those mattresses! They don't ship to Australia. http://www.royalcaribbeanbeddingcollection.com I was planning a Christmas cruise on Voyager but thats older ship then the Radiance. Can anyone tell me what the beds are like on the Voyager?? Any help would be appreciated. I'm trying to follow Master Matt's advice about booking my next cruise but unfortunately in Australia we only have older RCCL ships. Thanks Wliampl, Xobertlab and MylesDots 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted January 30, 2015 Report Share Posted January 30, 2015 I've never had issues with any of RC's bedding. But I do think I prefer a hard mattress over a soft one so perhaps I never really noticed. One thing to consider is Voyager was just refurbished so in theory, she should have new bedding. Perhaps that would be more ideal for you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted January 31, 2015 Report Share Posted January 31, 2015 I didn't notice any issues on the Jewel, but I do know that you can usually request an egg crate or mattress topper if the bed isn't to your comfort liking. I will say my wife loved the beds, but mostly because the corners were curved. She thought that was the best thing ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michelle Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 love the bedding on RCI ships - just was on the Freedom and had the egg shaper mattress pads, so comfy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieCoasterKing Posted February 2, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 I've never had issues with any of RC's bedding. But I do think I prefer a hard mattress over a soft one so perhaps I never really noticed. One thing to consider is Voyager was just refurbished so in theory, she should have new bedding. Perhaps that would be more ideal for you? Glad to hear it's most likely a one off. We had three mattress toppers on our bed before we called so I don't think we were the first to complain! Do you know if they changed the bedding on Voyager? The guy who head laundry on Radiance said it wasn't touched on Radiance when it went into dry dock in 2011 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteSoxFan Posted February 3, 2015 Report Share Posted February 3, 2015 Just off the Jewel and slept great everynight. Matt and DocLC 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted February 4, 2015 Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 I always forget to bring my own pillow to cruises and every time I sleep like a baby on the ship. I'm looking forward to my Quantum cruise.... inside room = pitch black sleep! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike_ Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 I concur on the quality of rccl bedding on Jewel. They were as good as any Marriott I've been in, and slept like a baby. (Slept for two hours, woke up crying with wet pants ;) jk) Geema, DocLC and markinct 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryce G. Posted February 10, 2015 Report Share Posted February 10, 2015 I have a feeling this was a one-off. Especially since Radiance was just in dry dock like 3-4 years ago. May have just been a bad mattress that they got from the factory, and they just kept it as-is. I think you should be fine on Voyager. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LanaH Posted August 21, 2015 Report Share Posted August 21, 2015 Not sure if you're on Voyager or Explorer (you right Voyager but your next cruise listing says Explorer - hence the confusion, however, if it is Explorer, they changed 90% of the beds when we were last on her in 2012 and since she's been in dry dock since, I would suspect they have been changed again since. We have been on 3 separate ships and I have always found the beds to be exceptional and I'm pretty fussy as I had a severe back injury in 1997 which nearly left me paralyzed - even my bed at home gives me some rough mornings but not so on these ships. I think you had a one of on Radiance although I'm surprised they didn't change the matress for you as they do keep spares in stock...hmmm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadyInJax Posted April 21, 2016 Report Share Posted April 21, 2016 Hi. Everyone. I realize this blog is old, but I am responding for anyone who would like to travel on one of these ships soon. I have been on the below ships within the past 7 months. Freedom of the Seas (twice) - comfy bed in both our interior and balcony rooms Brilliance of the Seas - hard bed Enchantment of the Seas - hard bed Vision of the Seas - REALLY hard bed Freedom offers the most comfortable bedding of them all. The other ships had beds that were hard as rocks! My husband likes firm mattresses, but even he said they are too hard. Vision was so bad that we had over half a dozen extra pillows brought to our room, and we lined them up under the mattress pad. I suggest that if you do go on one of these cruises, buy a portable foam mattress pad. I got the Simmons Siesta Memory Foam Roll-up Bed recently, and I am going to bring it on my next cruise on the Oasis. I pray Oasis is better, but I am not taking any chances from now on. AussieCoasterKing 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted April 22, 2016 Report Share Posted April 22, 2016 There has been some [semi-recent] discussion on CC about the new hard mattress. Apparently RCI made a huge new mattress purchase for replacing existing mattresses and they are very hard. I was on Allure in Feb and the mattress was very comfy but (b/c of all the negative chatter) I had them place a mattress topper on my bed before I got onboard so I don't know if the underlying mattress was ok or had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themastodon Posted April 22, 2016 Report Share Posted April 22, 2016 Book a suite! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcarney Posted April 22, 2016 Report Share Posted April 22, 2016 Book a suite! Or just get a drink package. Have a few too many and you could sleep on a park bench. :D MikeK, thefoodguyjamesinasia, Matt and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melbae9 Posted April 23, 2016 Report Share Posted April 23, 2016 On my Anthem cruise in October, our mattresses were so hard, it was almost unbearable. Our Navigator cruise in February had a pretty hard mattress as well, but we were in one of the new rooms on deck 12. I never had these problems on our first few cruises. AussieCoasterKing 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie92 Posted April 24, 2016 Report Share Posted April 24, 2016 I loved the bedding on freedom last year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieCoasterKing Posted April 24, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 24, 2016 Hi. Everyone. I realize this blog is old, but I am responding for anyone who would like to travel on one of these ships soon. I have been on the below ships within the past 7 months. Freedom of the Seas (twice) - comfy bed in both our interior and balcony rooms Brilliance of the Seas - hard bed Enchantment of the Seas - hard bed Vision of the Seas - REALLY hard bed Freedom offers the most comfortable bedding of them all. The other ships had beds that were hard as rocks! My husband likes firm mattresses, but even he said they are too hard. Vision was so bad that we had over half a dozen extra pillows brought to our room, and we lined them up under the mattress pad. I suggest that if you do go on one of these cruises, buy a portable foam mattress pad. I got the Simmons Siesta Memory Foam Roll-up Bed recently, and I am going to bring it on my next cruise on the Oasis. I pray Oasis is better, but I am not taking any chances from now on. I'm so glad to hear that others are finding the same issue! We thought it was just us! My wife suffers from a bad back and its just not worth it anymore. Our last cruise she had to get several massages just to cope. Even our kids who way next to nothing and can sleep anywhere found there beds uncomfortable. I almost suspect thats why they've made them so hard. We were booked on the reposition of Ovation next Jan hoping the bed would be better in a new ship but I think I'm glad it was cancelled. 14 nights would've been murder on both of us! Anyway I would love to know how you find the Oasis. We sailed on Allure in 2011 and loved the bed so much we wanted to buy a mattress.. which you could buy but not outside of USA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bsbrady Posted November 14, 2016 Report Share Posted November 14, 2016 That is BS. We were on the Anthem in its inaugural year and the beds were like sleeping on plywood. Sounds like to me that RCL went really cheap with whoever they selected as a mattress provider. We are going to be on the Allure in January, I see you mention that the Allure had a comfy mattress? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieCoasterKing Posted November 14, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2016 That is BS. We were on the Anthem in its inaugural year and the beds were like sleeping on plywood. Sounds like to me that RCL went really cheap with whoever they selected as a mattress provider. We are going to be on the Allure in January, I see you mention that the Allure had a comfy mattress? We were on Allure in 2011 and the beds were awesome! I'm not sure if they have changed since then. We were on Explorer 12 months ago and the bed was as bad as Radiance. We always have two cabins and my girls beds were so bad even they complained and they can sleep anywhere!! Thank you for letting me know about Anthem I guess my theory that the newer ships have better beds is flawed. Unfortunately I don't see us cruising with Royal again, it just isn't worth it! Not very relaxing if you can't get a decent nights sleep!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UkuleleCruiser Posted November 14, 2016 Report Share Posted November 14, 2016 I concur on the quality of rccl bedding on Jewel. They were as good as any Marriott I've been in, and slept like a baby. (Slept for two hours, woke up crying with wet pants ;) jk) That's usually my experience, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bsbrady Posted November 14, 2016 Report Share Posted November 14, 2016 It seems that the newer ships and ships recently have gone into dry dock are the ones people are complaining about. Looks like when RC is swapping out the mattresses the new ones are very hard MylesDots, Xobertlab and Wliampl 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted November 15, 2016 Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 We had a bad bed experience in the Serenade. I asked for an egg crate, but they no longer have them as they weren't able took sanitize them. We settled for a comforter under the sheet to soften the bed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donolog Posted November 15, 2016 Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 While I have only had good experiences with mattresses on past cruises, I do wish they would give you the option when booking between a hard, soft or foam mattress. They should be able track average customer preferences and have an appropriate proportion of their staterooms fitted with a variety of these options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted November 15, 2016 Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 While I have only had good experiences with mattresses on past cruises, I do wish they would give you the option when booking between a hard, soft or foam mattress. They should be able track average customer preferences and have an appropriate proportion of their staterooms fitted with a variety of these options. Logistically, I don't see how that would work since it would require then to reclassify cabins based on there mattress type. There only way it would or could work is if they went with a Select Comfort type of mattress, which i didn't find to be all that durable or reliable in my experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieCoasterKing Posted November 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 I'd settle for a mattress that stops me feeling the supporting "frame" underneath it! RestingBird and Floski 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donolog Posted November 15, 2016 Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 Logistically, I don't see how that would work since it would require then to reclassify cabins based on there mattress type. There only way it would or could work is if they went with a Select Comfort type of mattress, which i didn't find to be all that durable or reliable in my experience. Logistically there are a few ways it could be done. One would be to use the same approach as is used for 3rd/4th person options where symbols are used to denote which staterooms have pullman beds and which have sofa beds. You can select a stateroom based on your preferences and/or your search for staterooms can filter only staterooms that match your preference -- the same could be done with symbols denoting staterooms denoting alternate mattress options. Another way of handling it is to have mattresses that are firm on one side and soft on the other, and can be flipped based on preference, or the mattresses can have pillow tops that can be added or removed with a zipper -- selecting your preference could be handled the same way you choose whether or not you want separate twins or one king size bed in your stateroom. And finally, they could, as you suggest, reclassify cabins based on mattress type. Perhaps these are aspirations that need to be limited to luxury cruise lines or maybe suite class staterooms. If my future experiences are the same as past I'll be perfectly happy -- but some of these reports of overly hard mattresses is concerning. DocLC and Jerel 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieCoasterKing Posted November 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 Logistically there are a few ways it could be done. One would be to use the same approach as is used for 3rd/4th person options where symbols are used to denote which staterooms have pullman beds and which have sofa beds. You can select a stateroom based on your preferences and/or your search for staterooms can filter only staterooms that match your preference -- the same could be done with symbols denoting staterooms denoting alternate mattress options. Another way of handling it is to have mattresses that are firm on one side and soft on the other, and can be flipped based on preference, or the mattresses can have pillow tops that can be added or removed with a zipper -- selecting your preference could be handled the same way you choose whether or not you want separate twins or one king size bed in your stateroom. And finally, they could, as you suggest, reclassify cabins based on mattress type. Perhaps these are aspirations that need to be limited to luxury cruise lines or maybe suite class staterooms. If my future experiences are the same as past I'll be perfectly happy -- but some of these reports of overly hard mattresses is concerning. I think these are some great ideas however I feel your premise is off. They haven't done this due to customer demand for harder mattresses. I suspect it was done to reduce weight. You might think I'm crazy but you drastically reduce the wait of 2000+ mattresses it is going to make a difference! Either way, I doubt we will be on another Royal ship after what has been said on here about Anthems beds. I'm just glad they cancelled our Ovation cruise in Jan! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug Posted November 15, 2016 Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 I think it's probably hit or miss. This is our 5th time on the Freedom and the mattresses in 8557 / 8559 are way to hard. They don't have any foam toppers but instead a few 1/4 inch thick toppers that look like the top of a mattress. But last cruise in August on the Freedom on deck 8 had outstanding mattresses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrh2016 Posted November 15, 2016 Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 There has been some [semi-recent] discussion on CC about the new hard mattress. Apparently RCI made a huge new mattress purchase for replacing existing mattresses and they are very hard. I was on Allure in Feb and the mattress was very comfy but (b/c of all the negative chatter) I had them place a mattress topper on my bed before I got onboard so I don't know if the underlying mattress was ok or had. Way, Is this something you requested from RCI before your cruise, or just when you checked-in the morning of your departure? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted November 15, 2016 Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 Way, Is this something you requested from RCI before your cruise, or just when you checked-in the morning of your departure? Probably contacted the concierge as I believe WaaayTooo tend to gravitate towards the sweet suite life. ;) You can request the same from your cabin steward when you meet him/her or leave a note with the request. wrh2016 and Floski 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted November 16, 2016 Report Share Posted November 16, 2016 FWIW, I like the mattresses across the fleet. Even on Harmony, I slept like a baby on them. It's a subjective thing. Heck, there's no objective way to even determine what is hard or soft when it comes to mattress firmness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieCoasterKing Posted November 16, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2016 FWIW, I like the mattresses across the fleet. Even on Harmony, I slept like a baby on them. It's a subjective thing. Heck, there's no objective way to even determine what is hard or soft when it comes to mattress firmness. While I agree with you that it can be subjective, I've certainly never stayed in a hotel where you can feel the aluminium siding under the mattress that they use as a bed frame. My body also has never ached while laying down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted November 16, 2016 Report Share Posted November 16, 2016 Way, Is this something you requested from RCI before your cruise, or just when you checked-in the morning of your departure? Actually, anyone can request the mattress topper on any bed. Just contact special needs and tell them that you have a medical need for a mattress topper. Special_needs@rccl.com. Special <underscore> needs@rccl.com Do NOT wait until you get onboard. Chances are, it's too late at that point. RestingBird 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted November 16, 2016 Report Share Posted November 16, 2016 While I agree with you that it can be subjective, I've certainly never stayed in a hotel where you can feel the aluminium siding under the mattress that they use as a bed frame. My body also has never ached while laying down. I've never felt anything like that. I'm not saying you're wrong or that I'm right...everyone perceives things differently. "That coffee is too hot", "that chair is uncomfortable", etc. WHStoneman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tnt2056 Posted December 2, 2016 Report Share Posted December 2, 2016 Just got off Jewel last sunday. I honestly have to say the the floor would have been softer to sleep on than the bed. Couldnt wait to get to a hotel and sleep on a comfortable bed. Room steward told us to take it up with guest services. Guest services told us this is how it is fleet wide and we needed to request a mattress topper during booking. Little good that did for the 9 nights of horrible sleep on this cruise. We were planning on staying 4 weeks on adventure and 4 on jewel again in Jan/feb but now have put that on hold til I get a direct conformation from RC that this issue can and will be corrected. Ive been on over 60 cruises and never had a bed this uncomfortable on any cruise line including RC. So whatever they were/are thinking when they changed to these mattresses, I hope they fix it because I really enjoy RC and would love to go back to them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jticarruthers Posted December 2, 2016 Report Share Posted December 2, 2016 Adventure had the new beds (we think) last week. All 3 cabins were like sleeping on a stone slab. All 3 cabins complained and the stewards laid on layers of extra comforters under the bedsheet ... seemed like they were expecting the request as they all knew what to do. With the comforters added it was bearable but not comfortable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AussieCoasterKing Posted December 2, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2016 Just got off Jewel last sunday. I honestly have to say the the floor would have been softer to sleep on than the bed. Couldnt wait to get to a hotel and sleep on a comfortable bed. Room steward told us to take it up with guest services. Guest services told us this is how it is fleet wide and we needed to request a mattress topper during booking. Little good that did for the 9 nights of horrible sleep on this cruise. We were planning on staying 4 weeks on adventure and 4 on jewel again in Jan/feb but now have put that on hold til I get a direct conformation from RC that this issue can and will be corrected. Ive been on over 60 cruises and never had a bed this uncomfortable on any cruise line including RC. So whatever they were/are thinking when they changed to these mattresses, I hope they fix it because I really enjoy RC and would love to go back to them. My thoughts exactly!! I just hope they don't have the same plans for Celebrity! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clear Laker Posted December 2, 2016 Report Share Posted December 2, 2016 We were on the Adventure in Nov. 2015. We were told by the Stateroom Attendant that we had got a new bed that week. She stated that the Adventure was replacing them 20 at a time each week (her section was that week). So in theory, half of the staterooms should have gotten new beds prior to dry dock. For what it's worth, we have never been on a RCI ship that didn't have the hard mattresses. Our Travel Agent always arranges for a mattress topper for our bed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firegal2539 Posted December 6, 2016 Report Share Posted December 6, 2016 Thanks to WAAAYTOOO I called RCI and had mattress topper added to my four RCI reservations. Thanks WAAAYTOOO I really appreciate all the help you have given me. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted December 6, 2016 Report Share Posted December 6, 2016 Woohoo, glad you were able to get it, CAndie ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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