"Cruise Influencer" COMPLAINS about First World Problems - Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship Fail 

Good point about the people who have to save up for a long time in order to take the cruise. Thank you for speaking up.

I love that you dont want to be a Karen. And you were definately NOT one. The ship management does need to know these things. You handled it just fine. I might have done the same. The only things we ever had cancelled were due to weather.

You should have led the improv class. That would have been a hoot; and I bet you would have done a better job than the person scheduled to run it. You are a professional and were already on time! 😂

It's ultimately the cruise director's responsibility to have staff at their places. Was there any announcement to apologize to anyone who might have wanted to go to it? If you hadn't told the consierge, would anyone have even known? It's best to bring these to their attention so they can make sure it doesn't happen again.

I have only been on 11 cruises in my lifetime. I have never stood in the line to complain. But now with the apps on cruises, I love how they nudge you everyday, asking you to give updates on how the cruise is going. This is where I will say things that were a hit or miss. I remember on Celebrity, the captain would interrupt the last 15 minutes of our dance class with morning announcements. I wrote in the app that I wanted to enjoy the entire 45 minutes of fun. The next day, announcements were halted until after class. It's the little things. They'll never know until you say something.

I think you did the correct thing. I have done the exact same thing - to me if management isn’t aware of the problem they should be made aware of it.

Cruise lines have cut so many perks/niceties over the years that when something that THEY advertise as being offered is not, in fact, offered, it's just not right. I understand that some things are out of their control (weather, technical issues, or a sick crew member), but they should have a plan b or at least be made aware of other issues. As long as it's done in a non confrontational, polite way, as I'm sure you did, the cruise line should be happy to know and try to rectify the issue(s). Loving all the posts Morgan! ❤

Like you said some people save up forever for a cruise. Having things like this go wrong. Leave them with the sour taste in their mouth about cruising and disappointed and what they expected.!

I think it is worthwhile to alert the staff that customers are having these experiences. They (the cruise line) have a lot of money invested in their product/service and delivery of said product/service is what the customer pays for. If they do not get what they paid for, they go elsewhere to make their purchase. I'm sure Royal wants to retain their customers, so... good on you for stepping up and speaking up.

I was on the Spectrum of the Sea last winter and although none of the performances were cancelled, every single performance had some kind of interruption or pause or problem due to technical issues. Every. Single. One. Royal Caribbean have made their shows very technical with things like drones, moving platforms, screens, etc. When it works, its great but it only takes a tech error to make everything grind to a screeching halt.

I am one of those people who have to save up for a nice vacation. I would have been disappointed to the point of never, ever, ever going on that particular cruise line again. No excuses for such blatant disregard for paying guests.

As a manager, I appreciate when people let me know something isn’t meeting expectations. Sometimes, it isn’t in my control to resolve it BUT I can’t fix a problem I don’t know I have.

It definitely sounds like the entertainment staff was having some problems. Crew members need to know ship time. It's a good thing it wasn't a port day or they might have been left behind.

I would have been frustrated at that point too. Sure, some of it was out of anyone's control, but 2 out of 3 things just not happening cuz nobody showed up is pretty ridiculous

I agree that many of us save all year for a vacation and to be let down three times is too much for any paying customer. Anyone can make a mistake but to not have a backup system for a show seating 1,800 people is bad management. You were right to say something and showed a lot of restraint in not coming forward earlier. BTW, You are a saint for enduring the snide comments from viewers.

Bonus points to Morgan for using the literal translation of karaoke (empty orchestra.) One of the great things I’ve learned from the internet is there’s no correct way to pronounce a word. You just want to be understood. The common American pronunciation is probably easiest (carry-okee) but go with whatever you want. Just know that’s a butchering of the Japanese pronunciation and if you want to be understood in Japan you’ll need to be closer to their pronunciation. But most Americans have no hope of duplicating the Japanese pronunciation - at least those of us who aren’t professional actors

I did a yoga class, just me & the instructor on a Celebrity cruise. I asked him if he wanted to cancel it since it was just me, and he said no. So I had a personal yoga session & I enjoyed it. You did the right thing!

Good video! And I liked all the different ways you said Carry-O-key! Krayokey, Carohkey. 😂🤣

I think 3 strikes and you're out. You made the right decision to speak to someone about these issues.

Congratulations on attaining Diamond. I just became Diamond earlier this year on Royal Caribbean. And for all the people who hate hearing from Diamonds, it's not a status thing - it's a four free drinks per day thing and for me that means not having to buy the drink package!! It's a getting to enjoy the Crown Lounge which is really cool on some ships - mostly the older ones, like Freedom of the Seas. I think you needed to be heard and it was something the cruise line needed to address. The crew members are used to time changes, for example. So really? Just because problems are not world shattering doesn't mean we should discount them. There's always a dire situation somewhere and while we should have empathy and do our part, we should not discount and ignore every day issues or quality issues that we face. That's like saying you don't have a right to complain because of lack of quality of service or go to therapy because "look at the people who have real problems!"

I don't understand how some people (the ones complaining, "first world problems") don't see that not only are you showing what is available on these cruises/vacations - honest reviews based on your experience, and if there seems to be a big disconnect with a cruiseline and their offerings being what they say, you are advocating for them! If no one says anything to these cruiselines, they might just slack off. Money is tight for almost everyone, and to save and then have several events/activities go POOF while you are on your one vacation for the year, that is why you make these videos and share that you did say something. If enough cruisers have a negative review of a certain cruiseline, people will know to look elsewhere. Good job always with your fun and the sometimes not so fun content -- it is what it is!

My I say, I just love your sense of humor and I love your posts! Keep up the good work.

Theater deal happens on Royal. So much of their shows are lip synch and programmed set and lighting that when the computer screws up they either have to start from the top or totally punt Happened with Columbus show on Harmony and w a few shows on Icon

My thought is that they can't fix it if they don't know about it. It sounds like you were respectful in your communication. As for the employee, I bet they never make that mistake again and so, in a way, you "helped" them in their professional development 😊

Yes, I think you were correct informing the customer service desk about the issues.

Kudos for stepping up with your “complaints”. The cruiseline could lose customers if they don’t respond to these issues. Thanks for watching out for new and infrequent cruisers.

By speaking up you may have saved other people from similar problems later that day. Good on you for gently speaking up for others.

Glad you said something. Likely to have that group pay more attention to time changes from now on. Sorry you missed those activities though. I always enjoy your content.

You were absolutely right to say something. People do spend years saving and anticipating their maybe once in a lifetime cruise. I am very often one of those that criticize vloggers who don't say anything when things go wrong on cruises. To me vloggers such as yourself, Tony, Don, Ben and David, Emma, and so many others, are (or should be) not only "tour guides of ships", but the voice of the people who watch your vlogs. You should be, in a sense, representing the people who watch and follow you and in some cases give you money. You were there, you saw what happened, by saying something you may have prevented it from happening to one of your followers. The dirty cabin, the nasty food, the poor entertainment, the lack of smiling faces, the pot smell, the kids in adult only areas... these things can and do ruin some vacations. You may not feel like you need to be the "police of the ship" but your followers NEED someone to let the staff know if someone isn't doing their job BEFORE that same experience happens to them. How can the cruise lines fix something if no one lets them know it's broken. You are there. Like you said, it may not ruin your year because you'll be on another ship in a few weeks, but by saying something, you may have saved MY dream vacation from being a disappointment. Please, continue to be my voice.

We had that happen on the harmony for their unique show called Columbus. They had to stop mid show as the massive electronic cable that makes all the stage changes and movement of the main stage element was caught and cut in half. Good thing it was our second time seeing the show.

I'm all for bringing problems to the attention of management. They can't do anything about it if they don't know about it. As an avid cruiser (over 20) I've always been a "go with the flow" kind of person - and these problems wouldn't have bothered me - but I firmly believe that if something is lacking on your cruise - you need to let someone know. I will say - as an Equity actor - when automation doesn't work - there's no ability to do the show. The orchestra maybe stuck in the pit without the lift. The fly system may not work - and the helicopter (Miss Saigon reference) could kill someone. So - there are times that things go wrong beyond the control of the cruise line. I still think that these are first world problems - but that doesn't mean they are not important to you as a consumer. I would much rather hear about these problems than people "complaining" to justify removing gratuities from their bill. :-) I hope your cruise got better and you were able to see the show later in the week. (And you definitely should have taught an improv class on your own.)

I think you handled it well. I am not sure that I would have said anything following the 'singing event'. Due to the amount of people present, I would figure that the ship personnel would be made aware of the miss if they weren't already. (Also, considering the equipment half set up, I would guess that another technical issue had occurred.) I agree with your bringing it to someone's attention when the improv was missed if only to make them aware that this type of thing had happened. I have heard other cruisetubers mention that many customers will not say anything while onboard, but will then let loose in the post-cruise survey. This prevents the cruise line from making any kind of change while you are still onboard. Perhaps by you alerting them to the situation, other events might be saved. maybe the cruise scheduling system was having issues and cruise staff were not being assigned properly to run these events. By you bringing it up, future issues might be averted.

Honestly what bothered me most as a viewer was that the cruise line gave you an excuse - not an apology. I think I would have been disappointed about the stage show being cancelled, but not said anything. Like you, it would have taken two instances of employees simply not showing up to do their jobs - in less than 24 hours!- that would have triggered a complaint. I hope you got flowers or a bottle of wine

Definitely legitimate complaint. No question in my mind about that. As long as you behave as an adult and not a 3-year old child I believe it is absoultely fair to inform guest services about these kind of things. That is why they are there.

I think you did the right thing Morgan. If three things in a row happened to me like that I would also have said something, might stop it happening again on the next cruise. My husband and I took our first cruise in 2009 and it was on Brilliance. The entertainment staff were excellent. We have cruised many times since but have yet to find any better. Sorry you didn’t have quite the same experience this time around. BTW got your book from Amazon it was a great read thanks for that and your very entertaining and informative vlogs. MC Ireland

I've just ordered a paperback copy of your book, looking forward to reading it. 😊

I think you handled it well. It’s nice that you consider other cruisers for whom a missed show, karaoke performance, or ship class might be important on a first cruise, or once a year (or lifetime) trip. I’m sure you were very polite about it! (Too bad you get such sarcastic comments here. Rudeness seems to be the way of the world these days!)

We had our shows altered and/or cancelled on the NCL Prima and the RC Oasis in the theater as well. The Prima's theater had water pipes burst and flood it out on the last day of the cruise right before us, it damaged many of the electronics and they couldn't do the Donna Summers Musical because they music system didn't work and they don't keep a live band on board nor had the licensing to make up for it in a different way that was logically come up with. Then on the Oasis they had issues in the theater that left trap doors on stage open and prevented shows for half the week and the issues also prevent an air show (with ziplines and such) in the theater from being preformed and made it a grounded show instead. Cruises don't have backups for anything, if it fails it fails. They already have your money. Granted the captain of the NCL Prima attempted to make up for it by introducing a free cocktail hour in the main lobby. Lots of drinks and appetizers... actually that was nice. RC didn't do anything.

I’ve got my next cruise in January and it’s people like you that make smoother trips for people like me because those mistakes most definitely will be unlikely to happen again because you spoke up, you were 100% correct in how you handled it

Happened to me once as well on Celebrity where the activity person didn’t show up, we all left kind of disappointed. Definitely a rare occurrence, first time after 12 cruises.

You were right to report this. Yes you are lucky to be able to cruise as much as you do but for people who are not that lucky things have to go just right

The cruise company need to be made aware that these sort of things are happening on their ships this is very poor management and i would be furious if was my cruise because like you said i have to work many of my days off to save the money for my vacations.

We had “ Saturday night fever” cancelled! Major Bummer! But ultimately I was still on a cruise ship so I considered us blessed and enjoyed the rest of the cruise. Love the channel btw

This activity thing happened with us on our last cruise on Brilliance of the Seas. We called the front desk from the venue and got the ball rolling. Someone showed up about 20 minutes late and they were all frazzled. Who knows what the problem was. But someone dropped the ball and this happened a couple of times so that is why this time we said something. We also showed up for a dance class and no one showed up. About 20 “old ladies” waited for 10-15 minutes. We were hot and irritated lol.

You should have been with me on the Sky Princess in Norway and Iceland... our cruise, which I just got home from, was spectacular!

Really glad you said something....food not as good in Main and buffet, and show quality less and now the lower/less quality and now many work arounds things to say why...it is important...RCL charges often way more on similar ships quality and similar routes.

I think it is so refreshing that you understand that for some people it’s a once in a lifetime or even if it’s a once a year thing, as opposed to your experience because it is different. And I like you am not one to go and “complain” either but all those three things together would have been too much for me also. There is no excuse for no one showing up to host an activity/event and maybe, one person should but be solely responsible and there should be some management of these activities.

You had all the right. Especially having all these things happen one after the other! BTW: care-e-oh-kee 😊

Re the time change... I'm a nurse. How would it have been if I missed the start of my shift? You were right to say something.

I think it’s a plus that someone with status (you) complained. I think they will take it more seriously. There’s nothing worse than waiting for a fun activity and nobody showing up to lead it

I am used to that on a RCCL ahip. On my trip, the big screen for the movies was out of commission ( for 3 months) and no Broadway shows. Everyone you talked to had a different excuse. How ver, one night, some of the performers were talking at night and mentioned that half the performers did not make the shipm

We were so disappointed in the activities on our recent Allure of the Seas cruise. We had such a good time two years ago on the same ship. This time the activities staff seemed so lackluster and uncaring. It might be an RCCL issue.

I’ve think it was perfectly reasonable that you went and said something. As you said some people save a very long time for these vacations. It would be really disappointing if I save up money for a once in a lifetime trip with my family to have so many disappointments on Let’s face it, these cruises are not inexpensive . Plus you went about it the right way you were not rude which I can never imagine you would be. I personally think you handled it all in the correct manner.

TBH I can understand the main show being cancelled as that is circumstances beyond their control. The other two things are annoying but once they are in the past they are in the past. Whenever I have complained on a cruise ship (rightly or wrongly) I have just had the glassy stare come back. Once had a meal comped and once got a bottle of wine. It is easy to let things like this spoil a holiday but nobody died.

if something like this had happened to a first time cruiser it probably would taint their opinion of cruises.

I appreciate you doing that for yourself and others…as you said many people spend years saving for one vacation. Recently Princess mispriced a paid up cruise of many travelers due to a princess mistake. A longer cruises was offered at a substantial discount but close to departure the travelers were notified they would not be allowed to board unless they paid more money approx 6k from what I understand. they now owed thousands more….imagine if you saved for this trip, bought air fare, got babysitting, pet care, hotel bookings, etc etc only to hear from princess that they will credit you 400 bucks on a future cruise? ….that is absurd I think? How about I never take a future cruise with Princess…how about Princess have systems in place to prevent these mistakes from happening. Attention to detail is key, if people paid attention to the time change you would have had your improv class, perhaps Karaoke would have occurred too.

Caught my eye . Just back from an Alaska cruise and first time with a unfixable issue at the front service desk. Things have changed. For reference, one or two cruises for the last 35 years. Ended up taking money off of daily service charges which Ive never done in those 35 years

Yes Morgan I think you did the right thing. Most folks save for a long time to take their family on a cruise and to have planned cruise activities not take place is very disappointing .. I for one got ticked off at Celebrity cruises for reminding me each day which gratuities I should be giving when i prepaid them before the cruise .

You would think with all the technology available to us today. The Cruise ship can’t have a clock that automatically adjusts in the staff cabins and staff areas? Simple fix.. there charging enough for the cruise may as well give the Crew some of those benefits in tech uplifts.

We had that happen recently on Mariner, took times over 2 days before we saw the entire show

You make a great point. I am researching for my first cruise. I can't afford a vacation and I won the cruise from my job. I would be hurt if half the entertainment were cancelled.

on the Apex during the show suddenly everything on stage stopped - performers stood for a minute and then all left the stage. Apparently the moving stage had a safety failure and had to stop immediately. First time we saw that.

I think you were in the right for saying something. It was on the itinerary so someone should have been notified about the activities not happening.

Hi Morgan. I haven't seen you in over 6 weeks. Somehow I became unsubscribed. I had thought you quit your channel. Good to see you again. Love from Liz Kotchek from Delray Beach, FL.❤

IMO you were absolutely correct to say something , one incident, huh ? Second incident what ? Third, yes you did the right thing.

So that explains the improv issue, but what about the karaoke? I wonder if you had gone to Guest Relations, would they have sorted it out on the spot? What do you do about you and your partner having different loyalty levels? I assume you do because you travel without him a lot.

Hi Morgan. I love most of your content especially about Hawaii which is my soul space, specifically Maui. This video had me snickering a bit because, whelp, we didn't have fancy Schmancy heavy computerized shows back in the cruzing days of the late 80s and the 90s. We were quite content and so happy to literally just cruise the days and nights away...slow stuff. Like midnight buffet...champagne pour...ice sculpting demonstrations...chocolate buffet at midnight...shuffle board on the decks...couples making love in their staterooms instead of publicly grinding...cooking demos...card games and coffee...Yup. slower times to rejuvenate. Oh yes. Almost daily massages if you got a good deal or won a raffle. If I'm one of these who saved up thousands and planned my cruise these days I would NOT do acting improve on a cruise. There's other opportunities like that in my city and I would get a more professional instructor. I also wouldn't worry about the wind ruining pickle ball or that no one was manning the Ka-Ra-O-KE(h) machine. Just ask the bar staff to turn it on. Chances are they are familiar with the machine or know someone who does. Then hang tohht for about 10 mins and use the time to peruse the song book. My husband once sat in with the band during their Madonna and 90s theme. That was fun. And we joined a dance-off once coz we were drunk. We left before it was over but throughout the rest of the cruise people kept coming up to us and telling as we danced so well and are we professionals. 😂 No. We were dressed for formal night and I was in a beaded, sequined dress with a twirly skirt. And we drank coz the drinks were like $2-4 each, definitely cheaper than quaaludes which we didn't do but heard was more expensive 🙃. So yeah. Things happened. The only thing I count on during cruising today is safe passage, clean cabins, comfy beds, better than average food, happy fellow passengers, the ports, amd occasionally being able to practice my native tongue with some of the crew and them occasionally sending me room service of our native dish with rice. Cruising is a state of mind and some folks never leave Idaho or Texas.

We had similar issues on our Alaska cruise sailing on Ovation. I eventually said something to one of the head waiters in the main dining room about the poor service. The rest I let, be known in our post cruise survey. Sure it’s first world problems, but we spent $6,000 for the sailing alone and for 6K you’d better remember to at least refill a soft drink once in 90 minutes.

This happened to us once.. it was a Celebrity ship with a highly technical set.. computer glitch… another show later in the week was also cancelled

One thing going wrong is just unfortunate but several things isn’t really on . As you said a lot of people save all year or years for this sort of holiday . I think you did the right thing , if no one ever complains then things will never be changed . Thanks on behalf of your humble subscribers!! 😉

They can't fix what they don't know. There is a huge difference between someone pitching a gigantic fit about something and just letting people know things are going on (or not going on in this case).

People are different.... I'm not as organized as I wish I was... BUT in a cruise ship, things operate in a "military way" with times/schedules, etc very adhered to .... So that's the game I'm going to play.

I've had over 85 cruise on RCL and has never experienced 3 problems on a single cruise. You did right by complaining . RCL usually corrects their errors. I bet it won't happen next cruise. If you do back to back to verify .

I brought up my kids saying "if you do not like something going wrong , say something - then you have a chance that things change" . If you never say anything, nothing will ever change because people simply do not know that something is going wrong. So, make a polite comment, maybe a complaint depending how severe things are, even give ideas how the problem can be solved. And you will see - a "real manager" will be more than happy if a problem can be solved with the "together".

Royal Caribbean has decrease the customer service a lot since the Covid. I am a Diamond Plus and sometimes I think I just need to look for other cruise options instead of cruising with Royal. Most of the employees treat you well if you provide tips all the time. In the past we enjoy every moment but the service has been decrease. Food in the windjammers are the same every day and not a lot of options are available during lunch. I will be sailing again on August in two more cruises and I hope it has improve.

Captain Morgan, I missed your live but I am saying you were correct to say something to the concierge ... if no one says anything, they will keep letting other things slide🙃

You were fine letting them know, you didn't go in angry and demanding anything, you were just letting them know things that happened. I very rarely complain about things, but on my last cruise I did go to complain about the fact that we bought tours that were listed as "small group" and when we were on them they had more than 30 people. That is not a small group and it delays everything. I was looking forward to a small group experience.

I’m one of those that saves for years for a cruise so yes it makes a difference for us

Had simular problem on Disney, something happened with shows computer and they couldnt do the show with out an internet connection. something was probley corrupted and had to redownload. Internet was quite slow in thoses days. they rescheduled for the next morning. It was aladdin, glad we didnt miss it, it was better than the one on broadway.

When I voice a complaint 99% of the time it must be something egregious. I am luckily enough to cruise/ travel multiple times during the year so I’m easy going. I TOTALLY understand for the people who have saved for this trip that it is totally different. I have a personal philosophy about cruising, if you have a “bucket “ list place you want to go to, fly there and make that your trip. Cruises have too many factors that can change things.

Sounds like the whole improv class failed the test. You were supposed to improvise when no staff showed up.

As for your critics, of course they are first world problems, but they are missing the point. I watch your videos for a realistic commentary of the good and the bad and that is exactly what you consistently deliver on. Keep up the great work Morgan!

we are looking to reach diamond status in the next year and a half. would love to see your reviews on the perks

The show being canceled would not have bothered me. However, the two events where the "leader" did not show up I think was worthy of mention to the Crown Concierge. Some of these events are led by people that Royal contracts just for the one cruise. If that person (and it could have been the same person) is not doing their job, Royal needs to know so they either don't pay them or don't hire them again. Most likely they were not full time Royal Caribbean employees.

You should have improvised the class, maybe that was the lesson

A lot of cruiselines have been cutting staff and activities for cost savings, and I think all of these are a sign of that. They probably intended to host these activities, but crew members were busy covering things elsewhere and couldn't make it. I'm suspicious of the time change reason.

We experienced the cancellation of Grease on Royal a few years ago due to a computer failure

And this situation I think I would want to complain with three things being cancelled. I’ve only gotten to customer Service on a few occasions once because I thought my shareholder benefit Was not given to me (I was looking in the wrong place) And when charges that I did not make appeared on my account.

93 cruises around the world! no complaints just live life be happy and smart traveling shit happens.

So the time change explains the improv class, but what about Karaoke the night before? BEFORE the time change? What was their reason for the no show? Poor form RCI.

It's one thing if a show is canceled due to technical difficulties (or weather). It's another thing if crew personnel are NOT managed correctly. The last two events are the fault of the Activities Director, who is the "kingpin" of all on-board activities. When an upscale restaurant has kitchen problems, it's the Executive Chef who gets blamed, not the sous chef usually.

I was watching an early show when a disabled man on a scooter turned the wrong way and tipped down the steps. The show was stopped. The theatre was emptied and people were shooed away to give him privacy as medical took him out. There was a second show planned for later so I went to that. If you planned your supper around seeing the early show or whatever you missed it. Nothing they could do but weird.

They should have had a backup system for the automation computer. And the fact that 2 other smaller events went belly up says that someone in MANAGEMENT is dropping the ball. I would have complained for sure. What are the odds that one person would encounter 3 cancelled events in 2 days? Wonder how many other ones got cancelled or screwed up. For those who say "first world problem", well you are correct....but that does not NOT make it a problem for people who pay money for this.

I think you did the right thing. The activities director can't fix the issue if no one knows about it, they definitely should be aware someone on their staff wasn't where they were supposed to be. I do wonder how long this missing person was going to go through their day with their 'clock' being wrong. Cruises are constantly changing clocks back and forth. Was it a rookie or what?🤣

For the first thing, if they can't do the show then they can't do it. The second thing needs to be looked into also to see what happen so it doesn't happen again. Same for the third thing as the ship's Captain must make sure all crew members know of time changes which can affect the operation of the ship.

Yes, say something even if they could not fix it for you. The next cruisers wont have the same issue hopefully.

I enjoy your pronunciation of karaoke. Don’t change it!

I would have said something. It can sometimes fix things if there's something broken that staff or management aren't aware of, and tbh the cruise line want feedback if something's wrong. I tend to do it as much for me as to help others who might think "oh somebody else will say something." I'm the "somebody else".

Agree. 3 strikes and I would say something

The third activity MAY have been scheduled to be presented by a guest enrichment speaker brought on board for that one voyage. Every ship will have one or more on board (I have been doing it for various cruise lines for 20 years, including Royal). Such a person is far more likely to miss a time change than a regular staff member, though I have never done so. If so, that person may be dropped from the list of potential invitees. Not the same as losing a full time job, but it would still be a real bummer. I do these about 12 weeks per year and it would be a major disappointment to lose it.