Royal Caribbean Group

My boyfriend and I booked the November 16th sailing on Anthem of the Seas. A trip we have been on before a few years prior and loved. We were told that there were weather changes that inflicted the cruise schedule, and I fully understand that weather is not controllable. We were already at the boat when we were made aware of the schedule changes, so we embarked and thought we would make the best of it.

We stayed for 2 nights, each day it was broadcasted over the intercom by the Captain the changes to the schedule. When we were made aware, at 9am, that we were no longer going to Bermuda, we decided to talk to Guest Relations about how to exit the ship. They told me directly that we will be getting a "full refund" for our stay if we left by 10 AM. We clarified if this included taxes and fees, and we were told "yes". We then decided to leave, because we could book another cruise if we wanted to later on when we had time available to do so.

Because of the conversation that we had on the boat, we were shocked to find that we were sent a Future Cruise Credit, and called customer relations. We were told that no matter what we were told on the boat we were only receiving the Future Cruise Credit, a cash refund for Taxes/Fees and the beverage package we purchased.

A few weeks later, we still didn't receive the taxes and fees, and still unsure why we weren't getting the full refund as we were promised on the boat, we called again. This happened for a few more weeks until we were told that we would receive the full Taxes/Fees refund by 12/20, and we were to call if we did not receive by this date. Apparently accounting was backed up and there was an issue with the system which is why it was taking so long. Although we were upset that we didn't get the full refund we were promised on the boat, we decided, again, to make the best of it and were looking at future cruises that could possibly fit into our budget/calendar. We both have vigorous work schedules so finding time to take off is really hard.

Again, we waited for the full Taxes/Fees.

We called again on 12/26 (due to the holidays) to check if there was another issue with the system, because we were only sent a small strange portion of money that didn't match anything on the receipt. We were told to wait another week or so, and to call again if the money hadn't arrived.

I just don't understand why, after all the phone calls and conversations we had while multiple levels of management and customer relations on and off the boat, that we received the call today telling us that an internal memo was sent, stating that we would now be pro-rated for our taxes/fees. It doesn't make sense even further is why we would be paying for more nights on the ship than we stayed when we never left port of call.

Again, I can understand entirely that weather changes the path that cruises go on. I can also understand that the captain of the ship makes the calls on what happens on the ship. What I cannot understand is that we haven't had one conversation with customer service that makes sense. I haven't heard the same story from anyone I've talked to. We've been called liars by the team and frankly experienced the worst customer service that I've ever heard of.

I recently cruised with Royal Caribbean on a Christmas Cruise from December 23-27,2019. I experienced horrible customer service while on this cruise.
I recently cruised with Royal Caribbean International Ltd, for a Christmas Cruise from December 23-27,2019. I departed from port canaveral on December 23, 2019 aboard Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas heading to Nassau and CoCo Cay royal caribbean's private island. On the departure date the cruise line did not inform it's customers of an issue with one of the life boats which required repair and would delay the boat from departing on time. No announcement was made until 4:30pm which was after muster was done. The ships captain offered no real information as to the full extent of the problem until 7:00 pm when he announced that the ship would be leaving in a few hours. The ship did not depart port canaveral until 11:30 pm Monday night. Upon entering my stateroom at approximately 2:00 pm I found that my bathroom was missing washcloths. I fortunately brought my own washcloths with me so I did not make a big deal out of it that night. My stateroom would go on to have 2 more incidents where the room was supposedly cleaned but was missing washcloths. Also the pillowcases and bed sheets had stains on them. After several other issues would arise throughout the remaining days of the cruise to include horrible customer service and rude employees. On the final full day of the cruise Thursday December 27,2019, I reported to guest services the issues regarding the housekeeping problems with the level of cleanliness that I felt was lacking. I expressed my feelings of frustration and the fact that I didn't feel like I should be charged the daily gratuity fee of $14.50 per day per customer which equates to $58.00 per person for the 4 day cruise. The guest service agent agreed and refunded the gratuity fees, also the housekeeping supervisor was called and informed of the situation. The housekeeping supervisor Damaris met me at my room and I walked her through the problem areas that I found. I was informed that the stateroom attendant was aware that he didn't replace the missing washcloths and made no attempt to rectify the problem. As a result of this conversation with the housekeeping manager offered me a 15% discount off a future cruise. I did not accept this offer I simply acknowledged that I had received the letter from guest services which contained the offer. I had to return back to guest services twice more after that meeting. The second trip back to guest services was because the royal caribbean app was not working and was also not updating my account charges. I was given a print out of my onboard charges. I also inquired as to whether the gratuity refund was reflected in the updated printout. I returned for a third and final time that night at approximately 9:00 pm. I went back because I was having issues with the photo studio and being able to access the website to download my pictures. I purchased a unlimited digital package prior to cruising and paid approximately $109.99. I repeatedly ask the photo studio agents for help in locating missing photos from my account as well as photos that were incorrectly placed on another customers account. I was met with little to no help with this problem. I waited roughly 30 minutes before I received help and even then the representative wasn't very helpful. When I went back to guest services to complain I was walked back down to the photo studio section and was there for an additional 20 minutes while they tried to figure out why I couldn't access the photo download website. After roughly 1 hour of trying to resolve the problem I went back to guest services to complain and inquire about compensation. The photo studio supervisor came and informed me that no refund would be issued. The only compensation that royal caribbean has offered me has been a 20% discount towards a future cruise which equates to roughly $200 for two people. I spent over $1800. I am seeking a partial refund as compensation for the multiple issues had aboard the cruise. Royal caribbean has been informed of this complaint.

I'm a gold member and booked my upcoming cruise and even paid for a family friend to cruise with us
We were promoted the specialty meals. Thats why we chose this specific cruise. When we booked in October, we were told to call December to book the specialty meals. We called dec and was told it was booked out! They said there isnt anything they can do even though it was their fault!

Hello

My name is ***, I would like to share my first cruise story with Royal Carribbean with you and I wish if you can share it pls.
11/18 for 4 days on Navigator of the sea....
This is my first cruise family vacation, I paid
2000$. I had such an awful, bad Terrifying experience because when I wake up on day 4 I fund bed bugs on my bed as you can see on the attached pictures, I spoke with the team on the cruise and I gave them the bugs, same time I showed them the bug and I took pictures as
Documentation, they noted everything they saw and they called the manger to see the bugs.
Also, I told them that I cant leave home without Steaming my clothes because I don't wants to take home with my bugs or their eggs, the took our clothes to steam it, once I received the clothes it was missing some item from our clothes. I took our Luggages and I put it in the trash because all the luggage was under the bed......
That was my first experience with Royal carbbeian #1 cruise in US.
When I called the customer service, I was trying to fight with then to get my money back, they denied everything. I'm so sad because I had this bad experience with them.
Best regard
***
Product_Or_Service: Royal Caribbean cruise

Royal Caribbean has the absolute worst customer service/sales representatives in the history of any large company. Upon reserving and getting information on many cruises they all of a sudden decide that they don't have the rooms to accompany my family and I. Than why did you tell me that you had multiple rooms available!!! Go ahead and book with them if you want to take the risk but I will not recommend it!

I paid for three cruise ports and only went to one.
My cruise was aboard the grandeur of the seas royal Caribbean cruise line from nov16- nov23 once on the cruise they told us that we would not be going to our first port due to weather issues. On the third day they told us that we would not be going to the second port for the same reason. I personally along with several of my friends complained to the company in hopes of some compensation the only thing we received was the taxes for one port which wasn't even a tenth of what I payed. I later researched this manner to find out the company lied as to why we didn't go to one of our ports Nassau it was because Royal Caribbean refused to go to Nassau due to of all of the violence and crime in recent months. Even if there were weather related issues they should have postponed the cruise or cancelled it. Not waste our time.

I have $750 credit from Royal Caribbean & they will not let me use it. False advertising & bad customer service.
My family, which includes my husband & 3 children, booked a cruise for June 2019. We unfortunately had to cancel. I had put a deposit of $1200 and was told I wouldn't get all of the deposit back but I was receiving $750 total credit for future cruises. My husband & I booked a cruise for March 2020 and was told I could only use less than $300 toward cruise. Spoke to Jana De Mesa who attempted to "advocate" for my credit to be used on new cruise booked. She called back stating that according to Royal Caribbean's protocol I would not be allowed to use my credit toward new cruise. My issue is this is my money & my credit & I should be able to use on my cruise booked for March 2020. Not only is it bad customer service, it's also false advertisement. Needless to say, I'm very disappointed in Royal Caribbean.

Original reservation #'s for June 2019 cruise that were cancelled:
XXXXXXX
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Reservation # for cruise in March 2020
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My wife booked a 3-day Caribbean Cruise on The Mariner of the Seas with RCCL for my 40th birthday, leaving 9/20/19 and returning 9/23/19. The original itinerary was for the cruise to arrive in Grand Bahama on 9/21 and Coco Cay on 9/22. In addition, my wife had surprised me with the Unlimited Drinks Package and my sister and mother also surprised me with the Unlimited Dining Package, a Birthday Cake and Chocolate Covered Strawberries
We found out, due to Hurricane Dorian hitting Grand Bahama, that we would end up with a day at sea on 9/21 instead, which was understandable.

On 9/20, we headed into 15 foot plus swells that came from Tropical Storm Jerry. This was unfortunate, in that my wife gets sea sick, but not the fault of RCCL. My wife ended up extremely sick in the room the entire night (nausea, shaking, throwing up). Many other cruisers were sick that evening and there were bags stationed on the stairwells for vomiting. My wife finally fell to sleep after 2am and we woke up extremely happy to be in calm waters on my birthday near the Bahamas. We got up, were able to go to breakfast and spent some time in the casino.

Early that afternoon, we heard an announcement from the Captain saying that there was a medical emergency on board and would be travelling to Ft. Lauderdale to drop the passenger off. This meant we were going to go back through 15 foot plus swells to Ft. Lauderdale and back. Immediately, my wife and I went to Guest Services. My wife was so distraught about having to go through the ordeal again that she fell into a panic attack. I asked *** at Guest Services if we could get off the ship at Ft Lauderdale so she wouldn't have to go through the same experience from the prior night. *** reiterated that there was a medical emergency onboard and that this was a decision the captain made to get that passenger off the ship. My wife asked why we had to go all the way to Ft. Lauderdale since the ship has a helipad, and I again told him that my wife and I wanted to get off the ship in Ft Lauderdale. At this point, the Guest Services coordinator next to *** leaned over and loudly said to my wife, "Why are you being so selfish?! There's a man with a serious injury that needs medical attention!" All eyes in the Guest Services line went to my wife, who was still in the midst of a panic attack. I again loudly told this man that we only wanted to get off the ship to avoid my wife being sick again and were NOT asking for medical care to be denied to someone. Before things could escalate, a supervisor was brought in. He explained the Jones Act and told us that we couldn't get off the ship without a hefty fine and medical clearance; however, the medical doctor was off duty and wouldn't be back on duty until AFTER we left Ft Lauderdale. He stated that an emergency call to the doctor was "very expensive." At this point, he looked at my wife and said "well, do you want to pay that? Do you? We need to do it right now. You need to make a decision right now!" He told me that we wouldn't qualify to leave the ship and would be "wasting our money" trying to do so. He encouraged us to "enjoy the ship and relax" and then proceeded to tell my wife that he hadn't slept much the night before because of all the swells too; this did NOT help the situation. At this point, a female supervisor approached and tried to calm my wife and assured her that things would be "fine." They offered her seasickness pulls, which my wife was already taking. Knowing we were getting nowhere, we left and went back to our room, where we remained for the rest of the evening. My wife was sick the entire rest of the day and night.

When we arrived in Ft. Lauderdale a few hours later, I watched from our balcony as EMS took the man who had the medical emergency off of the ship. He was seated upright in the gurney and smiled and waved at everyone as he disembarked (we have the video). There was no particular hurry to this man's departure and it was non-eventful. Our ride back toward the Bahamas had us in 15 foot plus swells for about 8 hours. Fortunately, once we were near the Bahamas again early on 9/22, the waves calmed considerably and were able to have 1 good day on our 3 day cruise at Coco Cay.

When we returned home, we contacted RCCL Guest Services to let them know of our experience, from the Captain making the questionable decision of driving through Tropical Storm waves to return to port, to the Guest Services personnel accusing my wife and I of being horrible, selfish people and bullying my wife in front of other guests. During the first discussion we had with the Guest Services Call Center, my wife spoke to ***. She told us they would use the information as a "learning experience for their staff" and thanked us for the call. My wife told her that our experience would not just be used for a learning experience. *** stated that she would have to contact the ship to get more information as to why that decision to go to Ft. Lauderdale was made before they would offer us any compensation and that this process would take 7-10 days. My wife followed up 3 times after the 7th business day and finally got a hold of *** on day 12 after a 45 minute wait on hold. At this point, *** stated that the ship had responded back saying they "did not need to provide a reason for making the decision to go to Ft Lauderdale" instead of calling in a helicopter or going to a closer port in the Bahamas. She stated that the captain is "free to make these types of decisions without question." She also stated that they had not gotten any information from the ship's Guest Services regarding the interaction we had with them. At this point, we were offered $132 credit for a future cruise by ***. My wife then asked to speak with her supervisor, who she was told would call her back later that day. We did not hear from *** that day, nor the next day. The following day, my wife called back again and *** answered her call; she stated that it was *** day off, so my wife asked to speak to another supervisor. *** picked up the call and identified herself as the supervisor on duty. She stated very apathetically that *** had been "more than generous" in offering $132 for a future cruise and that the ship's Guest Services could not substantiate our claim of "bullying," as they had no record of that interaction. My wife asked quite incredulously, "I doubt that anyone would write down that they bullied a customer onboard." She again recounted the situation with Guest Services and was told by *** that they had no documentation of said bullying and would not be hearing the issue again. At this point, my wife stated our request: she asked for a partial refund to be applied to our next cruise in the amount of $450, which was 1/3 of the Unlimited Drink Package we didn't get to enjoy and 1 day of the trip for both of us, due to the decision to drive us BACK THROUGH rough waters due to Hurricane Jerry located just to our East. We did not ask for any refund on Dining, as I was able to eat each night, even though my wife could not.) *** informed my wife that a request of that nature would not be considered and that, again, we were "lucky" to have gotten offered $132 for our next cruise. My wife asked for another supervisor, at which point *** informed her that that would not be possible. My wife told her she could apply the $132 to our next cruise, but that we would not be stopping here. At this point, *** stated that the $132 could ONLY BE APPLIED IF WE SIGNED A NONDISCLOSURE DOCUMENT! This was the first time that this had been discussed and my wife told her she would take this further and they could keep the $132.

To be bullied on board by 2 different Guest Services coordinators (one of which didn't deal with us directly), to be mocked in front of other guests while my wife had a panic attack at Guest Services, and for a captain to take a ship back into rough waters with NO ACCOUNTABILITY is absolutely unacceptable. We didn't ask for a refund, we didn't even ask for credit for the whole trip: we simply asked to be compensated for the ONE DAY that shouldn't have happened. We were instead offered just over what the going onboard credit was for booking a cruise online for anyone!

Our family and extended family cruise a lot with RCCL and my mother had surprised us with a future cruise with RCCL next year. Unfortunately, this whole experience has soured our opinion of RCCL and their Guest Services. We are looking for them to take some responsibility for the choices they made that affected the guest experience for us and many other families on this cruise.

Worst customer service ever! My family and I had 3 rooms booked on the Symphony of the Seas and had to cancel months before sailing. We were issued a $450 credit each out of our $750 deposit towards a future cruise. I NEVER received the email stating I only had 1 year or my credit would expire. MONEY THAT I PAID THEM IT WASN'T A GIFT. I call to book another cruise and to use that credit and they wouldn't budge. I ask for proof of where I was sent the email and of course there isn't any. No member of management would get on the phone with me. They just kept repeating that they couldn't do anything but they were sorry?? They did not care that they lost customers one bit. I am furious and so disappointed in Royal Caribbean and how they treated our family.

GREEDY GREEDY GREEDY.

We haven't even left for our cruise yet and we're already annoyed. I hate nothing more than difficult fine print, bait and switch and greedy tactics from a large organization.

We have been given no option to reschedule in light of Hurricane Dorian destroying the Bahamas. We did not pay to go to a devastated area on our vacation, but they simply do not care about what the customer wants. Their terms and conditions are written in their favor and do not factor in what is fair for the paying customer who pays for a specific product, that we are no longer getting.

Throughout the time leading up to our cruise, we have received absolutely no emails or communication letting us know that there is a cut off date for purchasing drinks and that check in is about to close. I didn't even receive anything from them saying I need to login to do anything. Now we will be forced to purchase the over priced drinks package for both of us because they force you to if you're staying in the same cabin. Too bad if you don't drink and your buddy does.

I'm sure we will have a great time, but it's already left a bad taste in our mouths and we haven't even left yet.

In Royal Caribbeans response to me when I phoned them was that we're still going to the same places as per the itinerary. My response was that we did not sign up to go to an area destroyed by a hurricane and our day in Nassau will be cut way short. All we asked for was the chance to reschedule. They can keep our money, but we want to go when it's all fine again and we don't have to go see a depressing site when we paid for a pleasurable time.

Worst experience ever and I haven't even left for my cruise. Hey are just a bunch of greedy money hungry cooperate people who change itineraries and screw those who don't drink or can't drink over with drink packages. They definitely do not care about customers or quality.

The primary issue was our disappointment in "The Key" program. We felt we were misled and that the program did not provide the benefits it promised. I have tried to provide constructive criticism below:

-There was no early disembark available at ports of call per Guest Services. This is advertised as part of the Key services. I called Guest Services to see how it worked and they told me there is actually not an early disembark service at the ports for Key members. They just said we wouldn't have any trouble getting off. We didn't have any trouble, but this is still a service that is advertised, but not actually available as part of the program. This was the main reason we purchased "The Key". We wanted to be sure we were not late to our excursions. False advertising, plain and simple.

-No Key luggage tags upon disembark. We were given a "standard" number. The paperwork left in our cabin incorrectly directed us to the Key area in Terminal C in Barcelona to pick up our luggage. The person on the gangplank also directed us to terminal C after we questioned because the signs said that odd numbers (which our tags were) are in terminal B. She said all Key members were in Terminal C. Our luggage was actually in Terminal B. We had to walk all the way back, which was quite a walk, now going against the flow of people on a small walkway with our personal bags and one Large suitcase. No offer to get our bags for us or to transport us to the other terminal in a more convenience manner. Terrible exit experience.

-We were really looking forward to the exclusive time on the Flowrider (activity onboard). We were sad to learn that it was only for one hour during the whole trip! We got in line for it right at 10:05am (opened at 10am) and we actually got on the flowrider at 11:10am. Over an hour wait, which as we saw later, was about the normal wait time. No extra value for us there.

-The exclusive hours (really only one hour for each of the four available activities) for key members overlapped, so you had to pick which one you wanted to do. Since we had to wait an hour for the flowrider, we were not able to take advantage of the ice skating time, for example.

-On several occasions, when we asked staff for assistance in understanding the Key benefits, they were unaware, and even worse, some gave us incorrect information about it. Two of the printed materials about the Key program left for us in our stateroom also provided incorrect information (i.e. incorrect floor number/location, incorrect disembark terminal number). Arriving in the wrong location and having staff struggle to find where we really need to go certainly takes away from the VIP feel that was promised.

So what did we ultimately get from the key?
-Early embarkation (although non-key individuals arriving early were able to get on as well). The line was a little shorter, but not much. Maybe saved us 10 minutes.
-An exclusive lunch at the beginning of the cruise at the steak restaurant
-An exclusive breakfast at the end of the cruise
-Priority disembarkation (same as embarrk, just avoided a very short line - maybe saved 5 minutes).
-"VIP" seating. We sat in the VIP section for one show only. For most of the available shows (VIP only applied to four of the shows), the reserved seats are in the balcony (Opal Theatre). We wanted to be closer so we didn't use them. We never had trouble getting good seats in the regular section. You have to arrive at least 10 minutes early to get the VIP seats. Coming that early, there were always plenty of good (usually better than VIP) seats available. Very little value here.

With all this, was "The Key" worth the price? Not by a long shot. False and misleading advertising about The Key program led to a very poor Key experience for us. Royal Caribbean makes it sound like a valuable program, but it is really not. Very misleading. If they included the real facts about it in their advertising, I believe most would avoid it, including us.

Warning. This review is very long and detailed.

Having sailed several times with Carnival, I know what a good cruise looks like. I got a good deal on this Royal cruise and my mother had just retired, so I decided to book it. WHAT A MISTAKE!!! What an unbelievably terrible experience. It was so bad, I purchased the internet package so I could draft an email. Below is the email...

We are currently guests onboard your cruise ship, Navigator of the Seas. Unfortunately, we have encountered several issues that you need to be aware of. If, after reading this, you desire further details, feel free to contact us. Details of our experience are outlined below.

Day 1 -
Got on board, dropped our luggage in our stateroom, met our steward, and made our way to the Windjammer for lunch. Several buffet lines were open, and the lines moved quickly. We first stopped at the taco bar and chose burritos and chips. After opening my burrito, I was disappointed to find a dried out, very burned - even charred - burrito that was completely inedible. Whoever wrapped this burrito had to have seen the condition of it before it was wrapped. And the chips were stale and tasteless. So we discarded our inedible choice and went back to the buffet where I chose baked chicken and vegetables. The vegetables were edible, but the chicken was dried out and tough. Not a great way to begin a cruise.
1st night - dinner at 'my time' dining - showed up at the appointed time - seated within a few minutes. Servers were polite but definitely had a language barrier. Almost immediately were asked by servers to rate them as a 10 on a survey that we would receive after the end of our cruise - were told by servers that it was utmost important because, "this is our bread and butter". The employees are begging for 10's on the surveys that will follow the cruise. Why are they so afraid of losing their jobs? While we were eating our entrees, another RC employee was circulating through the dining room with information about the other dining opportunities (that come with a hefty charge) while he offered to make our reservations for the following evening in the 'extra charge' dining room.....while we were eating!
After dinner, we made our way to the Royal Theater where a comedian performed to a sparse crowd. He was funny, his show was 'family friendly' and we enjoyed ourselves. After the comedy show, we changed clothes and planned to relax in the hot tub. However, we were surprised and disappointed to learn that it closes at 8:00 p.m.!!!! Why are certain sections of the ship closed by 8:00 p.m. and then reopened for 'private events'? I believe I paid for the whole cruise, so I should have access to the whole ship anytime an area is open to anyone. We decided to watch TV in our stateroom. Not much choice of channels unless you are obsessed with sports, which we are not. So we went to bed.

Day 2 - Nassau! -
We proceeded to the Windjammer to enjoy breakfast before a day of exploring the Bahamas. While expecting an omelette bar due to previous Carnival cruises, we were met with a breakfast reminiscent of those available at inexpensive hotels. While eating, the ship's emergency alarm system was activated. Many cruisers (including us) did as we were instructed in the muster drill (held the previous afternoon), abandoned our food, and quickly made our way downstairs to the nearest exit. Several crew members wearing life jackets were stationed at each landing. While exiting with a concerned crowd of fellow cruisers, we asked what the emergency was - and were informed that it was 'a drill'. This information would have been helpful before the alarm was activated. Since we were already outside and somewhat winded from rushing down eleven flights of stairs, we proceeded to the island. ( Having had vein surgery on both legs a few weeks back, along with a sinus infection, rushing down 11 flights of stairs, and an unexpected adrenaline rush that accompanied the unexpected 'emergency drill' left me lightheaded, and I quickly developed a severe headache.)
We proceeded to the island in hopes that my headache would diminish. One of our first stops was to purchase Ibuprofen since ours was left in our stateroom due to the unexpected evacuation. After finding a pharmacy and purchasing ibuprofen, I did my best to push through the pain; however, after only 30 minutes on the island, I realized that my headache was not going to resolve. We decided to return to the ship, and along the way my condition worsened. I sensed that my blood pressure was at an elevated level. My son, ***, accompanied me back to the ship and I told him that I needed an ice pack to cool down. As soon as we got onto the ship, I began feeling nauseous and faint. *** quickly walked to the medical clinic where there were 2 crew members outside the door. He explained the situation, requested a bag of ice, and was told to go upstairs to the nearest bar. He explained that my situation was urgent and an ice pack was needed immediately. One of the 2 crew members jumped to his feet and proceeded to the clinic where he was met by a locked door. He tried other ways to get in the clinic, but was unsuccessful. I told *** that I needed to lie down before I fell over. He assisted me into the elevator and took me to our stateroom. Along the way, he asked several room stewards that we passed *** the hallway if they could get him some ice. Each time, the same answer was given.....'You need to ask YOUR room steward'. Unfortunately for me, our room was at the very back of the ship, so we had a very long walk before we got to our room. After helping me to bed, *** had to then locate our room steward (who was cleaning nearby rooms). Once they made contact, our steward was very helpful and immediately got the needed ice. However, it was disheartening to learn that other RC employees were basically unwilling to help with a simple request. By the time our steward was located, my headache had progressed to a migraine and I was extremely nauseous. With a migraine, early intervention is vital. A simple plastic bag of ice when first requested would have made a world of difference.
Still concerned about my condition, *** (who is a nationally certified paramedic) visited Guest Relations in an attempt to locate a blood pressure cuff and stethoscope so he could determine if I needed to take additional medication. He first spoke with *** who is the Senior Guest Services Officer. She informed him that she did not have either item, and she called the medical team to inquire about fulfilling my request. She was connected to (head nurse), explained the situation, and handed the phone to ***. *** stated that they are not allowed to loan out any medical equipment and that *** should bring me to the clinic when they open at 4:00. (The approximate time of this request was 12:45.) *** explained to *** that waiting 3+ hours for the clinic to open was unacceptable (and medically irresponsible). *** suggested that *** return to our stateroom, call 911, and he would respond. *** explained that checking blood pressure is not a medical emergency, and that being a practicing paramedic, he is perfectly capable and qualified to do this on his own. *** stated that he would not help unless my son called 911. Calling 911, of course, generates a basic charge of $169 plus the cost of the 'procedure' (the procedure is taking the blood pressure). Getting nowhere with ***, *** terminated the call and asked *** for other suggestions. *** was sympathetic to the situation, and suggested that *** go to the clinic and talk directly to the doctor. *** quickly ran downstairs to the clinic and knocked on the locked clinic door - but no one answered. He looked around for anyone who could help. A nearby crew member did not seem to understand the English language, and was unable to communicate. *** picked up the phone by the locked clinic door and called 911. *** answered and *** again tried to explain the situation. However, *** cut him off and stated, "I already talked to you. Where are you?" *** explained that he was outside the door of the clinic, and *** hung up on him. Approximately 20 seconds later, *** came down the hallway towards the clinic with his medical bag. He stated, "I already told you - I'm not helping you." *** then requested to speak with another nurse, and *** revealed that he was the only nurse! *** then requested to talk to *** supervisor - the doctor. *** got the doctor, (***), who was obviously aggravated at being bothered. ***, once again, explained the situation. The doctor suggested that *** bring me to the clinic at 4:00 p.m. for a free blood pressure check.
However, as anyone with a basic understanding of the human body knows, ignoring possible high blood pressure for 3+ hours can lead to stroke, heart attack, death, etc. It was obvious that "the doctor" was not at all concerned about the well being of his passengers.
***, who was extremely stressed and agitated by the total lack of compassion *** concern for his mother, returned to Guest Relations. He again spoke with *** and explained his encounter with the 'inept' medical staff. She was extremely apologetic about the situation and called many other staff members in an attempt to help. At that time, all of the 'managers' were on a conference call. However, *** insisted that he speak with someone immediately. Several minutes later, *** came to Guest Services and already knew some information about my situation. *** quickly and bluntly informed him that there was nothing she could do as she would NOT override the decision made by the medical team. *** explained that this was simply unacceptable and asked who her supervisor was. She stated that her supervisor was the captain, and he was not available.
At this time, *** returned to the room to monitor my condition. Seeing that my condition had not improved, *** returned to guest services again, and was met by ***. *** stated, "this is not an unreasonable request, and you are the manager, so I need you to take care of this." *** stated, "This IS an unreasonable request." She then suggested that I call 911 and immediately informed me that there would be a charge for the medical team to respond and an additional charge for the assessment." She then said, "If this is really as serious as you are claiming it to be, you just need to pay the money." *** responded by telling her that it was obvious she was unwilling to help, and then requested to be connected to someone with Royal Caribbean International. *** responded to this request by connecting him to an automated customer service line, which was useless. After 20 minutes, he was connected to ***, who stated that she was a customer service manager. She was very rude and had no solutions to offer.

After reflecting on this situation, the statement made by *** (see prior paragraph), "If this is really as serious as you are claiming it to be, you just need to pay the money" shows a lot about the character of Royal Caribbean. It truly is ALL ABOUT MONEY!!!!

So, if you have read this far, I would like to ask a few questions:

Why is the clinic open only 6 hours each day?
Why are blood pressure checks considered an 'emergency' if they are needed during the hours when the clinic is not open - but they are complimentary when needed during the 6 hours the clinic is open?
Why is a request by a trained medical professional - to use a simple blood pressure cuff (available everywhere - without a prescription - at a cost of less than twenty dollars) considered 'unreasonable'?
How much revenue does Royal Caribbean make checking blood pressures on senior cruisers during the hours when the clinic is closed?
Why does the medical staff consist of ONE nurse and ONE doctor on a ship the size of Navigator of the Seas? (This is highly illegal AND immoral.)

Having sailed many times before, this cruise has, without a doubt, been the most disappointing cruise of my life - and this is only Day 3 of my cruise. It is almost comical how unbelievably terrible this experience with Royal Caribbean has been. This is only my second time to cruise with Royal Caribbean. And it is a complete disappointment.

I would love to hear your input on this, Royal Caribbean............

Royal contacted us and told us that they would take care of the situation. Food services contacted us and apologized. Royal corporate offered 250 off our next cruise..... Why would I cruise with Royal again?
I contacted Royal again to see if they had addressed the issue and they stated "We will no longer discuss this matter with you and no further action will be taken. Sometimes people have a bad cruise. Hopefully your next cruise with us will be a better experience." Unbelievable.

Please! I urge you to sail with Carnival. Their staff is compassionate *** cares. If you have booked with Royal, cancel and rebook with Carnival!

I WILL NEVER SAIL WITH ROYAL AGAIN! I will make it my mission to warn as many people as I can!

I am writing to express my EXTREME displeasure with Royal Caribbean and their Customer Service (Group Escalations team: ***). After SEVERAL 30+ minutes holds, Transfers, and 5+ Calls.

Reservation #: ***
Ship Name: Allure of the Seas
Sailing: August 25,2019

I had to cancel my girlfriends trip after she received an offer to start a New Job 6/20/2019 @7pm. Her Job starts August 19, 2019 so she will not be able to attend our trip leaving August 25, 2019.

On that day, the customer service representative informed me that I would suffer a 50% penalty and a refund of $512. After reviewing flight credit vs refund options I elected to just receive the refund and pay for a flight separately.

During the same call.. I asked about my trip protection through "Aon" and the room still being paid in full.

On June 22, 2019 I called back and spoke with A different agent because I had not received an updated Trip Invoice. When the agents pulled up my call they stated I needed to pay for a second person and the fee was $929.00. I informed them that the room was already Paid in Full "PIF" on May 27, 2019. Although GXXX's Name was removed I never received any money back. The agent then transferred my call to the escalation department. They contact *** (the manager) who stated that I should not have been offered a refund and that's through Trip Insurance. He said the money would be added back to my room and show as "PIF" today. No Refund. But, gave me the number to "AVO" to file trip insurance claim.

The manager stated I would receive an updated invoice 24hr after that call.

Today is July 1, 2019. I still have not received an updated invoice. I still have not received a refund/Credit for my party cancellation. However, your call center representatives are trying to charge me an additional $929.00 for a cabin that was Paid in FULL on May 27th in the amount of $2192.38. Please see attached.

This Royal Caribbean does not provide accommodations to someone who is handicap. They lied to make a sale and once on board did not provide assistance
On April 30, 2018 I called your cruise line at XXXX-XXX-XXXX. This was for ENCHANTMENT OF THE SEAS 10 JUN 2019 4 NIGHT WESTERN CARIBBEAN CRUISE We booked this cruise because we had a wedding party attending the same cruise. The representative I spoke with was well aware that we needed a handicap room. My fiancé is physically disabled. He can not stand for more then 15 minutes at a time anything longer and he falls to the ground in pain. From appearance you would never know anything was wrong with him. Just because you do not see it on the outside does not mean he is not suffering from something.
When requesting the room the sales associate confirmed we would have a next handicap room. I was also told my gratuities were included in my price. I made the payment over the phone in full. It was immediately after I received my confirmation that I was told there were no handicap rooms available on the ship and she did not include the gratuities on the reservation.

I understand some rooms may need to go to people with wheel chairs but my fiancé also needed one. He chooses not to use the wheel chair simply because he feels if he stops using his legs he has given up on himself. The representative then said the ocean view was a good size and it was just as accessible that we would be put near the main dining area and easy access to the elevators. She lied to us to what was said. Two weeks prior to being assigned the room I called to make sure the room we were assigned was close to the restaurant we would be eating at. I also brought up the issue with the gratuities. I was told it was included in my price and that the representative flat out lied to me. I spoke with the manager on duty and they said they would look into this and call me back. I never received a call back. Your calls are monitored and recorded I asked they pull the recording. No one ever did. I called again on Tuesday the 4th prior to checkin. I spoke with a new manager who assured me we were close to the elevator and easy access to everything. I believed she was doing what was right and was actually owning up to the issue. She confirmed we were in a room that was spacious enough for him to move around close enough to the elevators where I would not have to carry him. We checked in 3 days prior to the cruise and were given a 2:00pm check in time. When going through security no one was willing to help us. They forced him to stand in the long line when I offered to stand in line for him until we got to the front. We were also told they would take our bags to our room. We were told they were no longer taking bags. I had to carry his two bags along with my own. We asked several staff members to direct us to our room and they were rude and would either ignore us or were pointing us in the wrong direction making him walk when it wasn't necessary We stood in line at the elevator for over 25 minutes. He was on the ground in tears because he was in so much pain. Because we could not find the room and no one was willing to help us I had him sit in the lobby while I waited to speak with guest services. There was no way if he couldn't wait for an elevator that he would be able to make it to the room. I stood in line for over an hour at guest services. When speaking with guest services I was told the room was not accessible to the elevators. I was told to go to the room and wait until 5 to see if we could be assigned to a room accessible to the restaurant. I understand the staff was busy however this should have already been taken care of. This would have been avoided had the representative from the beginning not lied to us about our room assignment and the manager not promise something we weren't going to have. The room assignment was 2552. My fiancé barely made it to the room. During the muster drill I had him stay in the room because he could not physically get out of the room. In an emergency situation he would not be able to get out of the room. The staff is rude when explain

I sailed on the Adventure of the Seas on May 5th out of Ft. Lauderdale and arrived on May 17th in Bayonne, NJ and Royal Caribbean managed to ruin my hard earned vacation. On the way back to NJ, the morning of May 14th, my daughter suddenly became very ill after breakfast. She was throwing up and had a 103 fever that would not go down with the medication that I had brought with me. I suspected it was food poisoning since she became ill immediately after breakfast. After the second dose of medicine, I decided to go down to the medical office to get the opinion of a medical professional. I told them that I suspected it was food poisoning and asked what it would cost to see the doctor. They replied that the fee to be seen by the doctor would be $152 however if it was food poisoning, there would be no cost.
I was concerned about my daughter's fever and I wasn't going to let $152 prevent me from getting my daughter help so I decided to pay the fee and have her examined by the doctor. I signed an electronic consent and the doctor begins to examine my daughter. As he picks her up and places her on the bed, he turns to me and says, "by the way, I want you to know that no one gets food poisoning on the ship". I was in disbelief because first of all that statement is inaccurate and secondly, it should have been mentioned during our discussion of fees. I suddenly felt tricked and disappointed in our initial interaction.
Once the doctor examined my daughter, he said that she had a severe throat and ear infection. Although my daughter wasn't complaining of any pain even after being asked if she had pain, he said that not all infections cause pain and proceeded to give her antibiotics. My daughter's fever was not improving with the antibiotics. The doctor called my room periodically throughout the day to check up on the status of the fever. At 4AM her fever went up even higher to 104.7. I told the doctor that I was very concerned and I was afraid that maybe he diagnosed her incorrectly. He told me to bring her down so he could see her again. I asked him what the fee would be for a second visit and he said that the clinic was closed so it would be much higher than the $152 that I already paid. Since the clinic opens at 8AM, I decided to wait 4 hours and have my daughter seen during normal business hours because I couldn't afford the higher fees. He told me to give him 5 mins and that he would call me back. When he called me back, he said to not worry and to bring my daughter downstairs. I said no because I couldn't afford it and his response was don't worry about the money. He said that he wanted me to bring her down so he could give my daughter an ice bath and since it was in the middle of the night, he didn't want any complaints coming from other guest for my daughter crying during the ice bath. I was relieved! This meant that I did not have to worry about the money and he was waiving the fee. I thought to myself, what a compassionate doctor!
When I went downstairs, he had us go into the family bathroom in the clinic and I gave her an ice bath. Following the bath, he instructed the nurse to start an IV for the antibiotics so that they would have a more immediate effect. At this point, I did not approve for anything to be done or any drugs to be administered to my daughter but they proceeded to do what they said would help my daughter. We were in the clinic for about 45 minutes. They told us to have my daughter rest a few hours and bring her back at 8AM. I felt helpless, confused and distraught. The chief nurse was there in the morning and she started to draw blood. I informed her that blood had been drawn just a few hours earlier during the 4AM visit. The chief nurse explained that she wanted to compare the two blood samples. She then started a new IV. When I asked why this was necessary, she said that the other nurse had inserted the catheter improperly and it was bulging out from the side of her harm causing excruciating pain to my child. I asked the chief nurse if she knew what was happening and she stated that the clinic is not familiar with my daughter's medical history so they needed to experiment with different antibiotics in hopes that something would work. That statement was alarming. Experimenting? Are these experienced medical professionals or interns?
I immediately purchased the internet package and got in touch with my daughter's pediatrician in New York. We faxed the blood test information to my doctor and I immediately got a phone call from my daughter's pediatrician asking to put the doctor from Royal Caribbean on the phone. The pediatrician got on the phone with the doctor on the ship and told him that as a physician, he should know better! When a patient has a high fever that won't improve, it's never an infection but viral. The pediatrician told him to immediately stop giving antibiotics. The ship doctor was speechless but agreed to stop medicating my daughter. When the doctor got off the phone with the pediatrician, he said that he would give her IV fluids to help with my daughter's dehydration. As he hooked up the IV, I noticed that he added fluid to the IV. I asked what that fluid was and he said that he gave her a final round of antibiotics. I was in shock! The audacity to administer more drugs after my pediatrician told him to stop all medication is violation of my rights as a human being. He had absolutely no right to make this decision on his own.
On the 3rd day (last day of the cruise), we continued with the ice baths in our room and thankfully the fever improved and my daughter was back to feeling better but the nightmare was about to continue! Remember, when I mentioned that at 4AM the doctor wanted me to go to the clinic and I refused because I couldn't afford the fees? Remember he called me back after a few minutes and said, come down to the clinic and not worry about the money? Remember, my only signature was at the moment that I consented to the $152 fee? I never signed or consented anything beyond that point but when I went to check my account activity, I had a fee for $1078.12 in medical expenses. They charged me for the 4AM visit and considered it an overnight admittance even though she was there for 45 minutes not overnight. They charged me for the 2 blood samples that I did not request. They charged me to re-do the incorrect IV placement the first nurse had done. They charged me for all the doses of antibiotics - ALL of it at my expense without any signatures, approvals or my knowledge. Additionally, they falsified the bill by listing the 4AM visit as being admitted into the hospital on the ship.
Not only do I want my money back, but I demand an investigation. The Royal Caribbean clinic on Adventure of the Seas is being negligent and unethical. They are using people as lab rats and putting the lives of innocent people at risk. I tried to fight the charge that day but the head of guest services said that I was not allowed to leave the ship with pending charges. I called my credit card company and since the charges were still "pending" they could not help me dispute them. They all advised to make the charges hit my account so that I can escalate the complaint to Royal Caribbean and dispute the charge with my credit card company.

It took me over 3 months to FINALLY get my money back after filing a claim for having prostate cancer surgery prior to our cruise. Month after month the insurance company kept asking me for more proof! Why didn't they ask all at once? Because they were then able to drag their feet thereby holding onto my money for 3 additional months. The WORST travel protection - BEWARE. You are at their mercy. What a racket!

Very disappointed with Royal Caribbean, Booked three staterooms on Allure for August 25th sailing, the reason for choosing this sailing and this itinerary was we wanted to stop in St Thomas. I just received an email on 5/1/2019 saying about 4 months in advance of the cruise "We'll be reducing our speed because of a technical matter with one of the ship's three propulsion pods. As a result, we've had to make an adjustment to our itinerary. So, we will replace Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas with San Juan, Puerto Rico and will adjust our time in Nassau"
This is not what we booked for, when I spoke to Royal Caribbean and asked about cancelling as an option and refunding our deposits or getting a credit towards the fare for not going totally where we had booked, they said deposits are not refundable, and there are no other options at this time. We have been on at least 4 RCC cruises in the past. Will look at other cruise lines going forward. We are not getting what was advertised and sold to us!!!

Several months ago we booked a cruise with departure in August, but because of an unexpected circumstances , we had to change the dates and book another cruise (which is almost twice more expensive) on the same ship, departing in June. When changing reservation, we were notified about $100 fee per each person, which - including 2 children - added up to $400. Yes, we know, there were cancellation fees in terms and conditions, etc., but we did not cancel it. We're still going to cruise with Royal Caribbean and, actually, pay almost twice more for the new cruise. Charging us $400 for this change seems absolutely unfair to us. The original cruise is in "prime time" (it is completely sold out), so our stateroom will be booked by somebody else without any doubt, most probably for a higher price that we originally booked it. In other words, Royal Caribbean is not going to lose any money because of this change. Also, we could understand change fee per a stateroom, but charging $100 per each family member including children.... again, to keep it polite, we think it is simply unfair.
And it is not the end of the story yet. When making the change, they decided to "hold" another $100 (additionally to $400) from our deposit for "future cruises". They did not want to apply it to the newly booked cruise. It took a long emotional conversation to explain them that - considering their outrageous policies - there won't be any future cruises with them, so they agreed to refund $100 during 4-6 weeks. We'll see how it is going to work out.
To summarize: paying $400 penalties to book a new, more expensive cruise, considering all the described above circumstances, AND adding to it their manipulative tricks, such as attempts to hold $100 to increase chances you're getting back to them - seems not just like excessively aggressive sales practices; it is rather rude and absolutely unethical.

On March 2, 2018, my wife booked a trip with a Royal Caribbean phone sales representative to Cuba departing March 21, 2018. During the conversation, sales representative made no mention of needing passport expiration date more than 6 months past cruise date of March 21, 2018. Both mine and my wife's passports expire with 4-6 months of sailing date and ability to get passport renewed in time of the sailing after getting their email on cruise requirements on March 8 is not something that can be accomplished. On March 9th, Royal Caribbean agent indicated we would not be allowed to board ship with passport *** meeting requirement . Then discussed with Royal Caribbean Resolution agent highlighting requirement was not disclosed by sales agent when charging the credit card. Royal Caribbean agent will not refund cruise cost. Full disclosure during sales call was not made or sale would not have occurred on March 2, 2018. They will not refund the $1,907 booking charge only taxes and they cancelled the booking reservation as passports don't meet requirement. I will be contacting attorney in Miami for assistance and full settlement of damages company has created. Overall thought Royal Caribbean was a better cruise line. I would not be providing bad review had Royal recognized their improper sales practice as not legal to have missed disclosure requirement to board ship with passport date +6 months past sailing date.