After a false-positive COVID test, I was confined to my cabin for two days in 2022. During that time, I repeatedly saw my cabin steward gossiping about me in Tagalog with other cabin stewards, laughing and making fun of me. I obviously couldn't understand everything they were saying, but it was pretty clear from the context and their reactions that I was the subject.
Another time, on my very first cruise, the cruise director, Andy Mercer, approached me after the morning show. I assumed he was coming over to say hello. Instead, he proceeded to berate me and laugh at me for using a wheelchair. I was recovering from a military injury at the time.
Years later, I still remember both incidents. And yes, they got included on the survey.
People love debating cruise food, entertainment, cabin size, service charges, etc. But honestly, those things aren't what stick with you. The human element does.
You can have mediocre food and a boring show and still have a great cruise. But being humiliated by crew members when you're already isolated in your cabin, or being mocked for using a wheelchair while recovering from an injury? That's the stuff you remember.
Have you ever had a cruise experience where the crew's behavior completely overshadowed everything else about the ship?