This was a spring break cruise for us, a return to the Oasis class we enjoyed so much 5 years earlier. The ships are still beautiful and spacious, but we noted a marked decline in the quality of onboard food (tedious, repetitive, bland); entertainment (sub-par talent, technical issues with several shows); and service (distracted and at times indifferent crews, egregious service charges and tipping policy).

The RCCL fleet is still the nicest in the mainstream cruise segment, and their ships (including ours) are beautifully designed. But it was very obvious to us that the cruise line has skimped on service levels in order to squeeze every last dollar of revenue from its customers. Food in the dining rooms and buffets was uninspired and generally quite repetitive, a strategy likely designed to nudge pax toward the a la carte restaurants. Entertainment was much less varied and the talent not nearly as good as 5 years ago. Our Broadway show was plagued with technical problems (sound system), and we left after 15 minutes.

The international crew does their best to put on a smile and interact courteously with passengers, but I’m guessing they are poorly compensated, and RCCL asks its guests to make up the difference with gratuities. I’m not a fan of this scheme, and most will agree with me. Read more