Categories
Featured

Letter From The Editor: Regarding My Ship Reviews

Dear readers,

Recently I have beenĀ receivingĀ many helpful comments regarding my ship and cruise reviews. While I am always open to criticism and feedback, I felt the need to address certain comments that seem to be popping up quite often. These comments began to flow in around day 2 of my Eurodam cruise this past February. These comments were calling the honesty of my reviews into question. I don’t want to further belabor the point, so here are a few comments that IĀ receivedĀ that I feel the need toĀ address…

The cruise review of the Eurodam, in particular, was seemingly almost too good to be true. Every meal was the best ever; the Captain was the nicest and most accommodating that you’d ever met. I didn’t see a single knock or remotely negative comment in the entire review. I hope that this was truly the case, but I believe that your average reader will not believe your reviews if they’re all glowing with praise for the ship/cruise line.

Never any negatives. No cruise is that perfect! šŸ™‚

I’ve sailed the Eurodam recently with family (including kids the same age as Mike) and am just surprised that Mike had such a great time on this cruise. The reviews just seemed overly enthusiastic. We had a decent time on the cruise itself because of the Family Retreat Cabana. However we all like different things and maybe Mike really DID like it all.

First off, I want to apologize to the readers whose comments I used. I am not trying toĀ embarrass or call you out, I just felt these were the best comments to try to explain my point of view. Many of youĀ haveĀ never met me, but for those of you who have, I would hope you know me as a very up-beat and enthusiastic person. I am not one who is easilyĀ disappointedĀ or upset. It really can take a lot to ruin something for me. Now, when I board a cruise ship, my enthusiasm and bright outlook go into hyper-mode. At this point, nothing will stop me from having the time of my life. Whether it’s a missed port of call or even a mix up in the dining room. These are just bumps in the road, and I don’t use my rear-view mirror.

As shown above, some of my readers have pointed out that I am too enthusiastic in my reviews. Yes, this is true, mostly because I have never really had a bad cruise, but also because I am a person who doesn’t dwell on the bad things in life. Honestly, if I had something too say about a cruise line or ship that was a major problem, you would hear it loud and clear from me. Like I said, I’ve never really encountered something on a cruise that has ruined a day or entire cruise for me. My reviews will most likely continue to stay very positive and upbeat as long as my cruises continue to be exceptional. If you’re somebody who is looking for the negatives in a cruise review, then I am sorry, this is not the cruise website for you.

To summarize, my reviews may seem over enthusiastic and too perfect, but I am sharing my honest and true opinions. I will continue to write good cruise reviews as long as my cruises are very good. You won’t see many negatives from me, because I am not a negative person. Everybody has a different outlook on life, some people will really enjoy their cruise, some won’t. You’re going to find that I am the former.

Thank you for your understanding, time, readership, loyalty, and feedback. It is much appreciated.

Your Editor,

Mike Faust.

P.S. My review of the Costa Mediterranea is going live at noon. Warning: there aren’t many negatives. šŸ™‚

Comments

comments

By Mike Faust

Mike Faust is an avid world traveler, often found traversing city streets in Asia and Europe rather than his home city of Boca Raton. Mike has touched down in 39 countries, set sail on 35 cruises, and flown over 400,000 lifetime miles.

7 replies on “Letter From The Editor: Regarding My Ship Reviews”

Mike, Good for you! I hope that you retain your upbeat outlook and avoid the negativity that so many people bring to reviews of anything, not just cruises. I too try to keep an upbeat outlook of every cruise I’ve taken. Sure there have been bumps in the road along the way buts that’s life.

hello Mike, cudos to you for your positivity. I too am a “cup is half full person” and often made fun of for not being a Hater. I am so happy to see someone your age so upbeat. Furthermore, as someone who also loves to cruise., it would take a serious tragedy on board for it to be ruined for me. So far in 40 yrs of cruising, thankfully, that has not happened. Many, years of blissful cruising. Anniesails

One of my comments are above, and I’m just comparing my own experience with my kids the same age as you. We liked the cruise just fine but found very little entertainment that appealed to us. Come on Mikey… you really liked the HALCats? My teens cranked up their iPods from the Retreat area when they started playing. They weren’t bad, but not exactly the sort of genre that appeals to teens.

We too always find positives in cruises and after sailing all the major lines out there I look for the good in everything–after all, I’ve paid to be there and I’m not looking for a bad time. We loved the food on HAL and thought the Explorations area was great and one of the best use of space at sea. The ship was beautiful. Staff and crew were friendly and professional. It wasn’t bad at all. But as an older teen I can’t believe you were rocking out to the HALCats every afternoon on the Lido, hence my comment. I’m sure you loved the food and the staff treated you well because that was our experience too. In fact I will sail HAL again, with kids… who will bring their iPods and fully loaded Kindles. šŸ™‚ I have a photo of my kids on HAL which I would love to post but I can’t get it to load.

Don’t change one thing, Mike! You can never go wrong by being true to yourself!

I, too, share your positive enthusiasm whenever I board a cruise ship. And even with 30 years of US Navy “ship-driving” and, now, 370 total days aboard cruise ships, I still have that surge of positive energy EVERY time I board ship!

I can understand why some folks may not find one cruise line or another their particular cup of tea. Each cruise line offers a different experience….and folks should avoid cruise lines that don’t suit their individual/family needs or demographics. I do!

That said, there always seems to be a certain percentage of passengers on any given cruise who are ONLY there to nit-pick, criticize, and “suffer”! One wonders whe they ever left their perfect world at home for the hellish experience of a luxurious cruise! šŸ˜‰

You’re a champion, Mike! Keep up the terrific work and don’t let ANY naysayers get you down! Just imagine: they have to live with themselves!

In life I try to stay focused on the positive and stay away from the negative. Personally I am a Carnival Cruiser – 14 cruises to date… Never had a BAD cruise – some interesting experiences – but always found wonderful experiences on each cruise. I follow another cruise directors blog and it seems that some people board the ship complaining and expect a refund at the drop of a hat. Continue to stay focused on the JOY of LIFE.

Comments are closed.