Royal Caribbean cruise aka a Royal pain in my... My Fiance, I and our 2 children and mother in law took Adventure of the Seas which was more like Nightmare of the Seas. I've always wanted to go on a cruise as that was my dream vacation. What I thought would be a dream turned out to be a nightmare. Here are the long list of things I endured on my very cruise.
Problem 1.
The internet price tripled once we were aboard the ship. Keep in mind that we had contacted Royal Caribbean several times in regards to the internet pricing prior to taking the cruise. They failed to explain that the internet pricing given over the phone, would change once aboard the ship. Due to misinformation from Royal Caribbean's employees, my fiance wasn't able to get internet access until 3 days into the cruise. He also missed sales from his clients due to no communication with the US.
Problem 2.
Some of their employees seem to either not care or are really bad with faces. Our Seapass cards advised of an 8pm dining time; however due to the fact that we have a 3 year old and a 4 year old we requested an earlier dining time. Our children are in bed by 9pm, which is what we expressed to the manager at the dining room. The manager advised for us to come see him every night around 5:30pm to change our dining time. Unfortunately the manager never seemed to remember us, because every time we went down to change our dining time he kept telling us that our cards stated 8pm. We would have to go through the whole spiel again about how we needed to eat at an earlier time because of our kids.
Problem 3.
The food on the ship was horrible in all aspects. It came out dry, hard and bland. Unfortunately their food left me and my children with bad stomach cramps, diarrhea and a loss of appetite. The buffet had a few items that were safe, which water and fruit.
Problem 4.
Royal Caribbean is determined to make people pay the "suggested" gratuities. I had to call the front desk and speak to 3 different managers and 1 employee in regards to removing the gratuities. It wasn't until we spoke with Kylie a manager who finally removed our gratuities. After having calculated the gratuities at $14.50 per person per day, our bill would've ended up approximately $500.00. What they don't tell is if you do not have the gratuities removed ahead of time they will not allow you to disembark without paying it.
Problem 5.
My mother also took this cruise. She is a type 2 insulin dependent diabetic. My mother asked for something cold enough to support her insulin. The Royal Caribbean staff members provided her a cooler, which shutdown at approximately 7am while aboard the ship one day. Her $7300 worth of insulin got damaged due Royal Caribbean's faulty equipment. Instead of Royal Caribbean reimbursing her for the loss of her lifeline, they have chosen to assume no fault and drag this issue out now almost 2 weeks after the incident.
Problem 6.
This company has no regard for safety. We had to go back to Cozumel, Mexico twice due to 2 medical emergencies. My fiance called the front desk and asked them if they were going to do anything to make up for lost time. They advised him that they were going to burn up more gas to get people back in time for their flights. Within the next 30 minutes the boat was rocking like crazy, water was splashing on our windows and our 4 year old son ended getting a little sea sick. My 3 year old daughter almost fell off of the toilet and hit her head on the sink due to all of the rocking. We also heard things falling in the hallways. My fiance pulled up the speed of the boat which was at 36 knots (41.428 mph). The captain was speeding to make up for lost time. My fiance called the front desk and expressed our concerns for safety and was told that it was important for people to catch their flights on time. I read an article about Carnival Cruise and how they handled their delay due to a medical emergency. Please feel free to read it. https://www.cruisehive.com/carnival-cruise-ship-delaying-homeport-departure/35508.
Problem 7.
I called the front desk the next morning and spoke with Kylie the manager again. I expressed my concern of leaving our room due to the ship rocking so much and things falling. She advised that I could order room service free of charge for breakfast. We ordered orange juice for ourselves and our children. The orange came in cheap glasses, one of which broke in my 4 year old's mouth as he was drinking from the glass. I was able to remove most of the pieces of glass from his mouth. We contacted the medical center and was told to come down in about 15 minutes due to another medical emergency they had. We had our son drool into a napkin for about 30 minutes until we made it to the medical center where they performed a chest x ray to try to find anymore pieces of glass. There was no more glass thankfully. Due to such a horrible experience with Royal Caribbean, I will not take another Royal Caribbean Cruise nor recommend them.