Reviews, product perception

I haven't had a particularly productive day, I've been on the net
reading various things. I read dozens of reviews today and noticed
something. On the review sites, the ratings for the reviews for Carnival
and RCI exceed those for Celebrity, HAL, and Cunard.

Reading the comments on the latest ships it seems many went on HAL,
Celebrity, and Cunard expecting much more than on RCI or Carnival.
Carnival was really praised, for food, service, ambiance. Some didn't
love the decor but the meat of the product was liked by many. RCI had
plenty complaints about food but overall people were pleased. Celebrity
and HAL were notably noted for not really seeming to be a step up from
Carnival or RCI in any major way. People expected better food and
service than these lines provided. Cunard also took hits on the QM2 for
some pretty sorry sounding service, just OK food, poor communication and
other problems.

I think overall people have lower expectations of Carnival and RCI,
especially Carnival, and the ratings reflect these expectations as the
lines exceed expectations. The self-described higher rung products
aren't meeting expectations.


So, maybe the lines would benefit from toning down their descriptions.
Also, they can do something radical. Not just market to the higher level
of the mass market but step up their product in a real way. HAL's
signature of excellence and Celebrity's touch of luxury are just window
dressing on stained, scratched, dirty, and sometimes broken windows in
the minds of a significant amount of reviewers

Ben S.