Cruise on Gataway September 12-19, 2015. Cabin 10880

Dear comment readers,

As we were traveling in a group of seven, of varying ages, sexes, and life experience, I think that you should pay attention to my full review, below, under Cabin Review.

The entire group agree with my opinion.  I am afraid that it is not going to be to your liking, but if you do listen, and act upon them, you may find your future reviews more smiling. 

I was also privy to past reviews, by previous cruisers, that were even less generous to you than mine.  I am only sorry that I read then after my cruise, not before.  It may have saved me from the experience I had, and all seven of us in the group had.

Your ship is already built, but when you design your future ships, I would have the benefit of the passengers first, not last.  You will understand what what I am saying after reading my comment below under Cabin Review.

I hope you will pardon me, I just didn't want to repeat the same words twice.

EDITED TO ADD "CABIN REVIEW":

First you have to know that we cruise a lot. We cruised with Azamara, Carnival, Caribbean, Celebrity, Holland America, Norwegian, Princess, Viking, and more. We cruised the Caribbean, both North and South Atlantic, Mediterranean, and river cruising.

I must commend your crew, from the room attendant to the food service people, to any of the personnel that we have encountered. Each meant well, and projected a nice, good, and welcoming feeling. In particular, I must praise Garnet King and Moises Lequerico in their respective restaurants. They really went above and beyond.

We only cruise when we are able to enjoy a balcony. When we saw the Gateway’s “balcony”, our heart sank. Seeing the chairs positioned sideways to the water, because it is impossible to sit facing the water, because it wastes too many inches, made us understand who and what we are dealing with. Needless to say, seeing the “table” on the “balcony”, eating on the balcony, which I enjoy, was out of the question. Even sitting out to relax and read, was unthinkable. When I have to bend so that I can see to top of my hair in the bathroom mirror, the very same thought came to mind. Wanting to wash off the soap in the shower, my head, shoulders, or knees, had to touch the plumbing or the wall behind it be able to accomplish that. I understand that water pressure may wastes some water, but your solution was insulting. The tissues in our cabin ran out the day we sailed, and there was not a spare box. I understand that using one size plate in the Garden Café creates saving, but I recommend that you use smaller plates, too. More convenient for us, may be even saving to you, in the long run.

The noise level on the ship was disturbing to us. In the clubs, in entertainment venues, in the restaurants, at the pool and the Jacuzzis, you can talk, but not listen. It is due not only to the source of the music, but also to the materials used in construction and decorations that allows the sound to reverberate. Yelling was the only way to share experiences, with family or strangers, which was how we have made lifelong friends in the cruise lines mentioned above. We had to exit the Dueling Pianos performance, which we enjoyed, in the middle, since the volume level hurt our ears.

Even the food tasted better when we identified a quiet corner to eat in the restaurant.

The entertainment, compared to what we are used to, left us very lacking. We have also never heard of being charged to see an entertainer on a ship.

There was little to do in our free time. In other cruises we became tired from running between interesting, enjoyable, lectures. On the Gateway I am sorry to say, the highlight of my day was sitting in the Jacuzzi and sleeping. Yes, many people enjoy Bingo and the Casino, but pampering the intellect is important to some people. I even know people who book cruises because of a lecturer or an entertainer that they follow. Try to provide it. You may be pleasantly surprised. Trying to save this way may prove short sighted to you in the long run.