Disappointed in Diamond Princess

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icantwait

Guest
For anyone thinking of mailing Princess regarding their experience on May 22 sailing, I would suggest that you save your efforts.

I wrote them a letter and an e-mail regarding the poor service, problems with customer service, norovirus, missed ports, bad kids program, etc..... the "form" letter I received from them was extremely impersonal.

I do know one thing, and it is sad, I would of once considered myself a cruise addict but my husband and two children have all told me that they will not take a cruise again. Considering that this was our 5th cruise in six years we had somewhat realistic expectations!

I am upset that the only staff member who made a true effort on our cruise (the cabin steward) is given so very little of the tips!
 
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Einstein

Guest
Ahh I knew there was a reason I did NOT sail the 1st year a ship is brought into service. :grin Sorry could NOT resist as I have said MANY Times that from week to week and from pax to pax experiences differ. I am sorry for those cruisers having the unlucky situation of cruising on those Diamond Princess cruises. Hopefully your NEXT cruise experience will be MUCH More to your liking. :thumb

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cnmiranda

Guest
Interresting response from Icantwait. Did you want more restitution than you already received onboard during the sailing?

I sent a letter to Princess to inform them of my impressions during the 5/15 sailing (when the accident happened) and received a wonderful response. Every problem I mentioned was addressed individually. In closing we were given a $150pp/$300 total cabin credit for a future cruise. Perhaps it depends on the customer service rep that reads your letter.

I read a comment on the cruisecritic board from a poster whose husband used to work in Princess' customer service department. She noted that any letter that was extermely negative or harsh (nasty, can't find one positive thing to say) was immediately discarded. My letter pointed out the things I felt needed improvement and gave credit when it was due. Even though our ship encountered problems it was still one of my best vacations ever.
 
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MortgageChick

Guest
If the price is right we will cruise on a new ship in the first 6-12 months. We did it with the Legend TA Crossing and in 142 days we will do it on the Westerdam.

I will not pay a premium price to sail on a new ship and Princess product is priced at a premium with very few decent sales that I have seen. We can sail on HAL for less it seems ,and are quite happy to, as the service and food has always been top drawer.

I truly believe that it is about value. If you pay a lot of money you expect an excellent cruise experience. If you buy a cruise at 75% discount then you may be willing to overlook a few things. JMHO.
 
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deb r.

Guest
I was on the Diamond Princess to Alaska that left Seattle on June 5. We were nervous about the sailing since we knew about the "crash" two weeks earlier. This wa my first cruise so I have nothing to compare it to, but we had a marvelous trip! Everyone was extremely helpful and friendly. When we went to Tracy Arm we were not able to get even close, too much ice! We were not able to dock in Victoria because of "wind" and yest there was Holland America at the dock!

The Diamond Princess is a beautiful ship but it does not belong in Alaska. Hopefully Princess will figure that out before they loose loyal customers.

I'm planning a Mexican Riviera cruise on Nov 29 out of San Pedro on Norwegian-- any info on the Star would be appreciated.
 
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CaribbeanSun

Guest
I find Princess cruises considerably less then Royal Caribbean cruises. I have booked balconies for $700, minisuites for $800, insides for $400. I don't believe they are priced at a preminum price. I know some of the Alaskan sailings went for as low as $400 this year on Princess. You just need to know where to look.
 
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bostongal

Guest
Deb - I am on the Diamond Princess Mexican Riviera 11/27 out of San Pedro with some friends - great rates - join us?

About the above topic - I was on the Diamond in April and had a fantastic cruise experience. I didn't pay more for that cruise than I have for HAL or RCCL. I truly enjoyed every minute of that cruise - and I love HAL's product as well and would cruise them again in a heartbeat. I think alot of it is your attitude and expectations. I worked in the restaurant industry for over 10 years so I am happy if the waiter is personable (and if he isn't we move tables or on Princess we do PC dining), the food is edible (and I gained 10 lbs on the Princess) and the cabin is cleaned. Above and beyond that is a bonus considering how hard these people work. I am not expecting to be waited on hand and food or am I expecting them to treat me like Princess Diana while I am on board.

Meg
 
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kruznut

Guest
I just want to say that i'm sorry if some people had a bad experience on their particular sailing. But i can truly say after many sailings on Princess we have not had a bad cruise. We have enjoyed them all. I think we must understand that anything can go wrong on any cruise line at any time. If i have a bad experience on any particular cruise, i don't think it would be fair for me trash the whole cruise line based on that experience. If the line was as bad as some of the things i've read in this thread, i don't think they could even stay in business. I have seen some of the most rude passengers on some of these ships that one could encounter. In most cases i tip my hat to the crew. I think i could enjoy a cruise on any line out there because i just love being able to cruise. Just my humble =twocents worth ! :cheers Happy Cruising everyone ! =bigwave =bigwave
 
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Cruise cutie

Guest
=yeah..I'm with Helen..I probably would not feel this way if my cruises had not spanned over 10 years on Princess..and several different types of builds..and done a couple 7 days ones and a 10 day one..having not gone to Alaska yet..... there I plead total ignorance..but I was on the 4th sailing of the brand new Coral Princess..it was the best ever..I have even overcome a Princess cruise addition enough to dare book a HUGE ship on RCCl..and while I know we will compare ;it will be apples and oranges..so while any cruise I hope to be wonderful..I guess my best packing is my attitude..while some of the islands have not been the best..I do not blame a cruise line..guess it's all in what you put on yourself to expect..=twocents..IMHO...Joanne
 
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deb r.

Guest
Meg,

I will be on the Norwegian Star leaving San Pedro on Nov 29. I will be traveling with other family members that liked the Star's itinerary better than the Diamonds. I also thought it would be nice to try another line that also had "free style" dining--I loved the Diamond's many options! Is the end of November a good time for the Mexican Riviera? (We go directly to Acapulco, the Ixtapa, Puerto Vallarta the Cabo.) I'm a little worried about the end of hurricane season and rough seas. But also heard that the weather should be nice (in the 80's not 90's) that time of year. Have you ever used the "wrist bands" for sea sickness?

Deb
 
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bostongal

Guest
I use a combo of wrist bands and Bonine - I start the bonine the day before we leave - one in the a.m., one at bed. Don't have an issue with sea sickness. You will get some movement on the ship in the Pacific (we did in April) but it won't be awful. A hurricane at the end of November wouldn't be likely I wouldn't think. Isn't the season typically June-October? I have been through the remnants of one and ahead of another in the Atlantic and it's just a bumpy ride.

Enjoy your cruise - I like NCL and freestyle is alright with me - I just like Princess better I think. (have 5 cruises with NCL). Have a great cruise!!!!

Meg
 
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BCPC

Guest
We had a similar experience on the Royal Princess (October 2003 - Venice to Athens) with Captain Nash. The ship hit the prier while docking in Turkey, leaving a large gash just above the water line. It was blamed on high winds, similar to what I have read about the Diamond. We departed Turkey almost 24 hours later than scheduled after the ship was repaired and deemed safe to continue sailing.

I realize the Captain doesn't really dock the ship himself, but it seems a strange coincidence that these two incidents would happen with the same captain. I really have to question Captain Nash's experience and judgement. Also, Princess' judgement for giving Captain Nash the helm of even a larger ship than the Royal after what happened less than a year ago. I am a Princess fan, but reading these types of things disturb me a little.
 
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CaribbeanSun

Guest
Is it difficult for people to understand that the wind could have picked up after the Holland ship docked?
 
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John in LV

Guest
It is when there WAS NO WIND. It was a bright, sunshiny day, and what little breeze that existed certainly wasn't "gusting"!

>CaribbeanSun wrote:

>Is it difficult for people to understand that the wind could have picked up
>after the Holland ship docked?
 
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kruznut

Guest
:wave I think what is most difficult to do is to get people to understand that anything can happen on any ship, on any cruise line, at any time ! "Things are not going to be perfect all of the time. That's just a fact of life. The people i admire the most are people who can handle especially difficult situations and times with wisdom and understanding. Again, just my humble =twocents worth :cheers Happy cruising all =bigwave =bigwave
 
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p.g.

Guest
John, IT WAS windy that day , I live here and was here so where the heck were you?You obviously aren't a boater as you would be more aware of marine weather and YES the winds can very suddenly gust. Being on the sheltered deck you really would have had no idea how the winds were, and most likely you were not even on the deck while the ship tried docking.
Anyways we had some tree type wind related damage that day , so for you to say it wasn't windy was BALONEY.
 
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John in LV

Guest
I think you must be talking about the day that the ship crashed; I'm talking about the following week when the captain announced that he couldn't try to dock in Victoria because it was "too windy". (See my trip report, above).

John

p.g. wrote:

> John, IT WAS windy that day , I live here and was here so
> where the heck were you?You obviously aren't a boater as you
> would be more aware of marine weather and YES the winds can
> very suddenly gust. Being on the sheltered deck you really
> would have had no idea how the winds were, and most likely you
> were not even on the deck while the ship tried docking.
> Anyways we had some tree type wind related damage that day , so
> for you to say it wasn't windy was BALONEY.
 
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smize

Guest
I know that the reviews are for Diamond Princess, but this makes me nervous sailing on Princess. I reserved 2 rooms on the Grand Princess for next year and after sailing 2X on Royal Caribbean (both fabulous), all of these reviews are making me wonder???
It's a lot of money for 2 rooms and 5 people, not to have a terrific time. I have no bad experiences so far and don't want to. What do you think?
 
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CaribbeanSun

Guest
smize -

My Princess cruises have far exceeded my Royal Caribbean Cruises - don't let these comments stop you.

John in LV - I am going to say that it is up to the Captain to keep the ship and passengers safe. If he thought it was unsafe to dock, it is his call. Maybe the weather reports indicated it may be windy and it didn't pan out or whatever, regardless, it is his call. There have been a number of issues with docking in Vancouver and I personally would rather have the Captain play it safe then risk damage to the ship or the passengers. Since few of us have experience as a Captain of a large vessel such as the Diamond Princess, we really can't question his judgement.
 
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John in LV

Guest
You're right, of course. He has the experience and wisdom of a ship's captain (well, FORMER ship's captain - I understand that he has been reassigned), and I"m just a landlubber who doesn't know squat - for example, I would have thought that docking during the storm on May 21 would have been unsafe, but docking during the balmy sunshine of May 28 would have been safe. My bad!


CaribbeanSun wrote:

> smize -
>
> My Princess cruises have far exceeded my Royal Caribbean
> Cruises - don't let these comments stop you.
>
> John in LV - I am going to say that it is up to the Captain to
> keep the ship and passengers safe. If he thought it was unsafe
> to dock, it is his call. Maybe the weather reports indicated it
> may be windy and it didn't pan out or whatever, regardless, it
> is his call. There have been a number of issues with docking in
> Vancouver and I personally would rather have the Captain play
> it safe then risk damage to the ship or the passengers. Since
> few of us have experience as a Captain of a large vessel such
> as the Diamond Princess, we really can't question his
> judgement.
 
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