In December of 2014 we cruised to the ABC Islands on the Voyager of the Seas. I had been looking forward to cruising once again with Royal Caribbean, since it had been 27 years since my last cruise on the "Song of Norway", but realized very quickly that I had hit a "sour note" on the Voyager of the Seas!
As soon as my husband and I boarded the ship we were asked what "class" we were and we replied giving our reservation information. Again, we were asked what "class" we were and at that point we realized there was a "Caste System" on this ship. Both my husband and myself are well-traveled (over 30 cruises) and usually cruise at least twice a year. Usually, we travel on Holland America, Celebrity or Carnival, but we were looking forward to trying Royal Caribbean. However, the "Caste System" was a huge disappointment!
The "Caste System" to which I am referring to is Royal Caribbean's Award Program for frequent cruisers. I understand and applaud a cruise company that rewards their loyal patrons, but not at the expense of insulting possible future loyal cruisers, by placing people in a "Class" or "Caste System" when we all paid the same to be on the cruise. The entire week we were reminded what "Class" we were and where we couldn't sit, eat, drink, etc. etc. and the crew was rude and demeaning when enforcing the "Caste System"!