Royal Ripoff

Item: Mariner of the Seas
Rating: 2.6
Author: Jtdesigner

Mariner of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Southern

Jtdesigner

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 1 cruise (first)

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 19

Overall rating:

2.6 out of 5

8 Night Southern Caribbean (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)

Sail date: June 18, 2022

Ship: Mariner of the Seas

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 8260

Traveled as: Family (young children)

Reviewed: 2 years ago

Review summary

I was very annoyed, having booked this cruise a year and a half in advance, and paying extra for the day at Cococay, to be informed a month after booking, that they were changing all the ports that we were supposed to visit, to a lame cruise where we were at sea for 5-1/2 out of 8 days, no Cococay, and no compensation for the downgrade of the cruise. Simply put, BAIT AND SWITCH. Plus, the port charges which were 103.00 when I booked turned into 137.00. I questioned this and didn’t get a response for months, only to be told “that’s just how much it is”. FALSE ADVERTISING? I also did not appreciate being charged 29.00 per day for gratuity. A gratuity is voluntary. By my calculations, the cruise line took in an additional 348,000.00 that week for gratuities that may or may not have actually gone to the employees. I felt ROYALLY RIPPED OFF. This was not an experience I wish to have again.

Embarkation

2 out of 5

Hectic

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

1 out of 5

Full of fried, tasteless crap.

Windjammer Café

1 out of 5

Full of fried SAD (Standard American Diet) tasteless crap. It’s no wonder Americans are in such poor health. I walked by hoards of people with plates stacked high with garbage. Thank God they at least had a teeny tiny salad bar, as scantily stocked as it was or I’d have starved.

Main Dining Room

2 out of 5

Long waits, slow service, tasteless food

Onboard Activities

2 out of 5

Not enough pool chairs, except for on the top deck where you get blown away. Gym was ok. Enjoyed the steam room. Couldn’t go near parts of the ship due to the nasty cigarette smell emanating from the casino.

Spa and Fitness Center

1 out of 5

Gym was great. Spa was ridiculously expensive. My daughter got her toenails painted(no foot massage, soak or anything that usually accompanies a pedicure) for $79.00, plus 18%”gratuity”….pardon me, but a gratuity is VOLUNTARY. Plus, my daughter didn’t realize she was going to be charged the “gratuity”, and gave the girl cash. The girl was too dishonest to say that she was already getting a mandatory tip.

Logo Souvenir Shop

1 out of 5

Not much variety

Entertainment

2 out of 5

Ice show was a tragedy….performers falling all over the place. The ice rink was too small to allow them to execute some of the jumps they were attempting.

Children's Programs

5 out of 5

Childcare for my grandson was top notch. Those girls were angels.

Adventure Ocean

5 out of 5

Childcare was absolutely astounding

Service and Staff

3 out of 5

Towel animals were cute, but I did not appreciate staff going into my personal stuff, and helping themselves to my glasses to add to their creations.

Ship Quality

2 out of 5

I think they should have used the 1-1/2 year lockdown to perform maintenance on the ship. Peeling paint, warped cabinets, chipped tile.

Cabin / Stateroom

2 out of 5

Our cabin had not been cleaned. Crumbs from the last occupant still on desk chair and floor

Ship tip

Get travel insurance, so that when they bait and switch you by selling you one cruise, then changing up your ports to a lame cruise where you are at sea for 5-1/2 out of those 8 days, you can switch or get a refund

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Port Canaveral, Florida

3 out of 5

Nothing there but a restaurant.

Thumbs Up 0

Oranjestad, Aruba

3 out of 5

Weren’t many excursions to be had. We were told it was “off season”

Thumbs Up 0

Willemstad, Curacao

3 out of 5

Weren’t many excursions to be had. We were told it was “off season”

Thumbs Up 0

Kralendijk, Bonaire

3 out of 5

Weren’t many excursions to be had. We were told it was “off season”. Plus, our day was cut in half for no reason and we had to be back on board at 1:00. That didn’t allow much time for anything but junk shopping.

Thumbs Up 1

Disembarkation

4 out of 5

Pretty well organized…..they wanted us off quickly for the next set of suckers…

11 Comments

Jenvyh 2 years ago

Appreciate for view. Sorry you didint have enjoy the cruise

Thumbs Up 0

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willwork4cruz 2 years ago

You will not get all your money back even with Cancel for any Reason insurance. If you want to cruise, you gotta be flexible. Itinerary will often change. It would be nice, if they changed all the ports, to offer your money back.

Thumbs Up 0

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yk07us 2 years ago

If your itinerary had been changed to a new one you didn't want a month after the booking why haven't you canceled at that point?

Thumbs Up 1

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byhisgrace 2 years ago

Sorry that you didn't get to enjoy cocoa cay. We have had our itinerary changed 3 times on different cruises so we kinda prepare ourselves for possible changes.

Thumbs Up 2

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AuntPinkie 2 years ago

Sorry this cruise didn’t meet your expectations! Most precruise documents contain information about standard gratuities. Sorry you missed it. Appreciate your details!

Thumbs Up 1

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MichaelW 2 years ago

This is a good review for one reason, it’s educational for new cruisers. If you are new to cruising, do your research, ask questions, READ, and the “issues” this cruiser had, you will not. Educate yourselves and there will be no misinformation. Gratutities are automatically charged, and yes, paid to the employees on the ship. You do have the option to have them removed, but don’t. Cruise ship employees work extremely hard, 7 days per week 12 plus hours per day for months on end. Cruise ports can change, it is rare, but could happen for any number of reasons. Port fees vary by port, thus charges to guests will change accordingly. I have received cruise credit when a port was cancelled due to a hurricane. And one more thing, cruises are NEVER this terrible. Only people who set out to be miserable on a cruise, will be miserable. You can have as much fun or relaxation as you want. Your good time on a cruise is up to you!

Thumbs Up 11

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javawoody 2 years ago

Appreciate your view

Thumbs Up 1

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Dadm 2 years ago

Thanks for sharing your opinion. Untrue as it might be. Read your contract before cruising.

Thumbs Up 3

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GSpringer 2 years ago

Thanks for the review. Sorry you didnt seem to enjoy it much

Thumbs Up 1

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deboftheseas 2 years ago

And…port taxes changed as a result of the itinerary change. Port charges are different per port. Bait and Switch is not a thing. In the terms and conditions of all cruises, the cruise line has the right to change the itinerary. Read the contract, and next time do a staycation

Thumbs Up 6

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deboftheseas 2 years ago

Wow, obviously cruising isn’t your thing. I’ve seen tons of their skating shows, skaters don’t fall all over the place. Your glasses I’m certain, we’re on the table, I seriously doubt they routed through your personal belongings. The kids program is good, they all have accredited Early Childhood Education backgrounds. The smoking is limited to certain areas you can easily avoid. I am a non smoker, I think they should kill it in the casino. And in a sense, the Caribbean is off season in the summer as 90% of all cruise ships are in Europe right now….and just for your info, I am an accredited Cruise Consultant with the worlds largest travel consortium. 30 under my own belt, most with Royal Caribbean. Gratuities are standard across the board, although I don’t think they should be charged for kids.

Thumbs Up 6

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Other reviews of this sailing

A relaxing fun cruise

Outstanding

Great Southern Caribbean Cruise