Topic: reviews not worth the space or guide

QUOTE:

I couldn't agree more Malcolm but perhaps reviews should be datestamped in the Berlitz guide so that we the buying public have some idea of the true age of the review! We would then also expect the condition of the interior fabric to have suffered some wear too in the intervening period and the reality wouldn't be a big shock!
In the case I put forward, misinformation has been repeated year after year, i.e. 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 and perhaps even 2010! (I can't vouch for that because I don't have a 2010 copy of the guide!) A trifle unfair since the ship was under different ownership but with the dining review of the former owners!

Too true, and if it is an old review there should be an addendum along the lines of " had a mini refit in 20.. when carpets and soft furnishings were completely renewed"

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Too true, and if it is an old review there should be an addendum along the lines of " had a mini refit in 20.. when carpets and soft furnishings were completely renewed"

Absolutely!

Thank you for the great photos of Magnifica - the camera must have been glued to your hand!

Put me down for a badge please, but only if really tasteful, say maroon enamel with gold writing :>)) ;):D

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Absolutely!

Thank you for the great photos of Magnifica - the camera must have been glued to your hand!

Put me down for a badge please, but only if really tasteful, say maroon enamel with gold writing :>)) ;):D

I had a mad morning camera in hand where I walked the ship deck by deck from aft to fore and back again, didn't need the gym after that ~ but thankyou

The badge may arrive if you join in with the pyramid sign up scheme ~ just get 10 of your friends to join!

The Berlitz guide is fun to flick through and perhaps of most use if you want to know about a specific ship but I've found the reviews on this site of most use in telling it like it is from the view of an ordinary holidaymaker. More likely to be up to date too!
Liz

QUOTE:

The Berlitz guide is fun to flick through and perhaps of most use if you want to know about a specific ship but I've found the reviews on this site of most use in telling it like it is from the view of an ordinary holidaymaker. More likely to be up to date too!
Liz

I agree Liz, in general I mostly use it for facts that simply wont stay in my head like gross tonnage, maximum capacity, age, history etc. but I would like to have a little more faith in its accuracy! Especially since up until finding Cruise.Co it was a book which I actually handed over cash for!

I do like reading the reviews here but do so wish people would be subjective - often some slight (intended or not) seems to cloud peoples judgement and then seems to irritate them so much that they feel obliged to tear the whole cruise line apart from stem to stern! Scary stuff!

SOME -and only some of the reviews irk me because some of them have little sense of perspective - although if someone pays a lot of money for a holiday and it's not perfect, then I understand their upset, - but when it's rocky and they got seasick and they blame the cruise line- why?

or that chap who had his bag held up because he broke the rules and tried to smuggle in alcohol and so he got upset that the cruise line didnt exercise any discretion and let him have it... you cant expect that and then complain when you dont get it...

Then those who may have had a bad time and I feel for them and they write their reviews and maybe they are being slightly irrational about their reactions, but the comments where they get ripped to shreds - in my world, it's not ok to rip people to shreds or slag people off or behave as lord of the flies.

I like my world.

QUOTE:

SOME -and only some of the reviews irk me because some of them have little sense of perspective - although if someone pays a lot of money for a holiday and it's not perfect, then I understand their upset, - but when it's rocky and they got seasick and they blame the cruise line- why?

or that chap who had his bag held up because he broke the rules and tried to smuggle in alcohol and so he got upset that the cruise line didnt exercise any discretion and let him have it... you cant expect that and then complain when you dont get it...

Then those who may have had a bad time and I feel for them and they write their reviews and maybe they are being slightly irrational about their reactions, but the comments where they get ripped to shreds - in my world, it's not ok to rip people to shreds or slag people off or behave as lord of the flies.

I like my world.

Exactly my point Pomplemous. I know that a cruise is a big expense and it must be absolutely awful to find it going wrong for whatever reason but like you described, anyone for example who has alcohol seized (usually only until the last night) shouldn't really criticise the whole cruise because they broke the rules! I actually DO NOT like that rule and wish we had some way of having it squashed but unless ships come under EU jurisdiction the cruise lines can do what they wish. In a way too, because we all have different taste, some people will always criticise the food. That is fair enough but it rarely ever ends there. Mind you that is a major criticism because it is such a large part of cruising. One friend (yes a friend!) actually heavily criticised a well loved cruise line because she went to the Doctor and was completely enraged because she had to pay a £55 fee because there was a £100 excess on her insurance policy! I became completely frustrated trying to explain that this had nothing whatsoever to do with the ship! So that is the kind of thing that irritates me when I read reviews! You almost have to 'translate' them and sort out fact and fiction!

QUOTE:

SOME -and only some of the reviews irk me because some of them have little sense of perspective - although if someone pays a lot of money for a holiday and it's not perfect, then I understand their upset, - but when it's rocky and they got seasick and they blame the cruise line- why?

or that chap who had his bag held up because he broke the rules and tried to smuggle in alcohol and so he got upset that the cruise line didnt exercise any discretion and let him have it... you cant expect that and then complain when you dont get it...

Then those who may have had a bad time and I feel for them and they write their reviews and maybe they are being slightly irrational about their reactions, but the comments where they get ripped to shreds - in my world, it's not ok to rip people to shreds or slag people off or behave as lord of the flies.

I like my world.

People do have their favourite cruise lines and with some, heaven help anyone who makes even the slightest criticism. We all feel a bit like that I think. Like you say, people make a big effort to write a review and then get ripped to shreds, and in my opinion, that is even worse than people writing poor reviews because of some supposed problem!. Everyone is entitled to their opinions and providing the review is written subjectively and truthfully, fans of that particular cruise line do the line no favours by acting like injured animals! All they are doing is proving the point that has been made!

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I am quite surprised that he actually sets foot on board cruise ships! I bought the Berlitz guide in 2005 because I had booked a cruise on MSC Armonia. The review was pretty average, the worst point being that MSC added 15%to drinks charges! All in all though, I felt that the details of the ship being reviewed didn't quite gel with what I had already read in the MSC brochure. My thoughts on that score were absolutely right! Firstly the 15% charge I checked with MSC and was advised that this is incorrect.(and my cruising experience proved it!). I further checked with MSC details re deck names and venue names and they were able to advise me that the names in the Berlitz guide were actually the names used by the former owners of the ship (Festival cruises who ceased trading early 2004!) I accepted that it was possible for this to happen because of publishing times required for the guide. HOWEVER, I bought a new guide in 2007 and lo and behold the same review was published in that, complete with incorrect deck/public room names AND the information that 15% is added to drinks charges!!!!!
How can a review be written, including comments on the dining experience, when the names of the public rooms are incorrect and it would seem obvious to me that no one has actually stepped on board the ship???? I sent an email to berlitzcruising.com pointing out these errors in 2007. No reply was received! Soooooooooooooooo, I bought a new guide in 2009 and guess what? The information relating to her previous owners (who ceased trading early 2004) was still being published then! I do not have the 2010 guide but I do wonder if they are still naming the decks after European cities? (They are actually named after precious gems!)

One has to ask exactly how often ships are physically visited and reviews written given my own findings? In the meantime, hopefully the next copy will again come from cruise.co.because I certainly wouldn't hand over another £15.99 given the information you see above!

Still as original European cities

Jimbo

Well for those of you who spent time regardless of when to write a review, well done.
Some folks might write a few lines , fine. It is us who read that decide what is helpful or not.
As to the book, the rules apply and I assume Cruise.co.uk. folks check it out.
I've written a few reviews over the last 6 years and I'm surprised when I get an email out of vapourland to ask me more questions or to say thank you. Those are a nice surprise , makes ones day.

ps: I was replying to an item about reviews in an earlier thread and somehow I got blipped to page 5.
Cheers