In this case, bigger and better

Cruise Travel, Sept-Oct, 2004 by Joe Coker

My wife and I have just returned from a 10-day cruise out of San Juan on Royal Caribbean International's Adventure of the Seas. This was our 28th cruise, and our seventh on RCI. By any comparison, this was our finest cruise experience. We have learned from experience that we can determine in the first 24 hours if a ship staff is happy or not. A happy crew results in wonderful passenger experiences. Not only did we have our best dining-room staff and best room steward, but every contact with personnel on the ship was most pleasant and rewarding.

At first we had some concerns about booking on such a large ship (142,000 gross register tons). How pleasantly we were surprised with the Adventure of the Seas--efficient boarding, easy unloading, little or no standing in lines, adequate seating in public areas, etc.

While visiting with a member of the purser's office. I commented on how pleased we were with the staff and activities. He advised that Adventure of the Seas is currently ranked number one in every rating category in the RCI fleet. We believe it! And, glory of all glories, not a single staff member hustled us for good comments on the "Customer Satisfaction" survey. Obviously the staff had confidence that their services to their customers will translate into top marks on the surveys--how refreshing!

Joe Coker, Norman, OK