Royal Caribbean Cruise Line
Vision of the Seas Cruise Review
Mexican Riviera

Lori Flores
Age: 46
Occupation: Contract Administrator
Number of Cruises: 1
Sailing Date: October 22nd, 2006

Check in process was average, stood in line for approximately 30 minutes while going through security, and another 20 minutes to get ship pass. Registered on line so went to cabin immediately. Buffet in Windjammer Cafe the first day was good, not spectacular but good. Tables were plentiful and service was very good. Pool areas are lovely, lots of tables and deck chairs, the ship, all around, is very attractive.

The cabins are average, though storage was very good. The beds were unspeakably awful. To call them "beds" is a misnomer, they are metal cots with a low density foam pad that I would not use on patio furniture - even with two foam "egg crates" my back was killing me and I couldn't sleep more than 2 hours at a time, so was sleep deprived all week.

Guests on the 2nd deck were given an 8 hour window of time in which to vacate their cabins so that carpet could be replaced during that time - our cabin steward narrowed this down for us (she was wonderful), so we were given a smaller window of time. The beds were being changed out as we disembarked - adding to the already crowded conditions and taking up much-needed elevators and floor space.

The service in the bars, well that depended on who was waiting at the time. My companion and I found that if we didn't add an additional tip (15% added to the price of a drink automatically) that the waiter would not return to our table, in fact he would look right at us and then turn his back to us.

We had our hair styled for the final formal, and I discovered that my barely shoulder length hair qualified as "long" when I showed up - adding another $15 to the price though I booked the reservation in person. Same with my friend, who was also quoted $30 and has had the price changed when she showed up. The hairstylist badgered me for 15 minutes or so to let her do my makeup; when she exhausted herself of hearing "no thanks" she then said "OK, but I have to ask myself, why not?"

The entertainment was good overall, the comic was excellent. The Coasters were on board for musical entertainment, and though their voices are still in excellent shape, they spent more time trying to stir up the audience to stand up and raise their hands and clap, etc., then they did singing.

RCI's customer service representative, who I spoke to about the beds, service, etc was just a jerk, her response about the beds (which believe me, garnered many complaints on ship) was "Well, you're not going to find Sealy Posturepedic on any ship", topped only by her smart mouth retort about the crappy service.

We only made on port - Puerto Vallarta, because of Hurricane Paul, so spent five days at sea, so not much to tell. Don't limit yourself to shops sponsored by the cruise line - they are no better in quality, price or customer service than non sponsored shops - I personally would not buy jewelry at any of these stores. I purchased jewelry on board the ship, and the selection/price there were very good.

All in all, RCI has put me off cruising. The least a cruise line can offer is a comfortable bed, that is an assumed benefit that RCI chose to nickel & dime to death. At the very least, I would never recommend RCI, if you have a problem they will not only give you the brush off they will throw some caustic little insults in there because you have the nerve to expect to be at least as comfortable as a prison inmate.
 

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