impact of the Captain and Cruise Director?

[CanuckOnaBoat]

Hi,
I'm still relatively new to cruising. I've seen a number of Disney threads about the captain and cruise director. Why are people so interested? what impact do they have on the cruise?

Thanks for the explaining!

 

[ACQUADUCK]

They have some effect, the Captain not a lot, the CD some, it's like seeing old friends.

Natalie , ( biased as from UK, in fact England), she is excellent, she can be understated. She will muck in. Some CDs are a bit aloof, you will see her in Cabanas at breakfast clearing trays, or helping cruisers all over the ship, say on embarkation from port, she will be calling the elevators.

Rachel ( by coincidence from England) was excellent, very attentive, didn't muck in, but would pixie dust, if she spoke to a family, you may find a gift in your room, like a plush toy for the children. She then went high up in WDW.

Clayton and Christian were professional CDs ( Christian trained by Rachel). Warm, but came the entertainment route.

Clayton is a darn nice guy lots of fun.

Brent was aloof, separate, his own man.

 

[CamColt]

While I have had some CDs who stand out as a little more friendly or entertaining than others, to me the person who really matters is the Club Host. We spend most nights enjoying the adult entertainment so we spend a lot of time with them. Our favorites are Tisa and Jamzey (who sadly is no longer with DCL).

 

[ACQUADUCK]

Tisa joined the Magic post EBTA.

 

[Mitura]

Christiaan is great! If you ever saw the Destination American - Disney Cruise shows you would see Christiaan being interviewed. We we saw him on the ship after seeing these episodes my kids would rush up to him like a movie star. He would then, no matter how busy, stop and talk to the kids. A great guy full of energy.

To us the CD is the person responsible for the fun on the ship. When you run into them they stop and talk but the kids see them on stage introducing the shows so "they must be important!"

The Captain is also great but you rarely run into them. We make it point to meet the captain and get a pic with them.

I also agree that the entertainment hosts are very important. More important to me personally than the CD and captain. They run the fun events, interact with me at the clubs, events and shows. They work the hardest. Some cruises I remember them more than the CD or Captain.

 

[CanuckOnaBoat]

thanks! that's interesting. I remember trent from Disney Wonder alaska in 2016. i wish i knew the assistant director's name. she was wonderful. i probably remember trent because of his poor response to the chaos that was created at debarkation one day. There was no fun in that.

i'm going to pay more attention this cruise to see how the Cd plays a role! Or the Club Host!

thank you again!

 

[ACQUADUCK]

thanks! that's interesting. I remember trent from Disney Wonder alaska in 2016. i wish i knew the assistant director's name. she was wonderful. i probably remember trent because of his poor response to the chaos that was created at debarkation one day. There was no fun in that.

i'm going to pay more attention this cruise to see how the Cd plays a role! Or the Club Host!

thank you again!

I recall chaos on Panama crossings on Pins being purchased and long queues. Christian on one, Rachel on another were in there, in seconds, organised, got queuing tickets, cookies, drinks. Also on one crossing we had schedules changed again Rachel was straight in there.

Brent wasn't so effective on issues, quite aloof.

 

[allashore]

Is Tisa still on any of the ships? We were on 2 cruises with her, lots of energy!

 

[ACQUADUCK]

Tisa joined the Magic post EBTA.

Is Tisa still on any of the ships? We were on 2 cruises with her, lots of energy!

 

[lesroi]

We agree the the CD has more impact and some are better than others. Some say that the Captain has little impact on your experience but we have found that they can influence the crew and our time on the ship. Commadore Tom has been a little more outgoing but Captain Henri has been the most visible and engaging. We have cruised with him on a number of occasions and usually have a chance to chat at some point. One of our early cruises he walked up behind DH as he was taking a pic of us and he offered to take a family pic. While there we got a pic of the captain and DS.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I have recently gone to Captain Signings, because I like to at least meet the Captain. There used to be Platinum/Gold parties on every cruise and i enjoyed that interaction.

On longer cruises, Captains have participated in cook offs or scavenger hunts, and that’s how Captain Fabian became our favorite. However, I have enjoyed meeting them all.

 

[CarolynU]

I never really thought much about this question before sailing on the WBPC for a third time. The first time was with Natalie as CD and it was amazing. Lots of very varied entertainment well scheduled. The second time was with Clayton I seem to remember. Again great fun with one off events scheduled as it was a long sailing. The third time was with Darren, and oh boy the difference! It was strange and lots of passengers seemed to be unhappy afterwards on the FB group. I don't know if there were extenuating circumstances that we weren't aware of but the best I could say about the entertainment was that it was lacklustre! So yes the CD does matter, and maybe if everything goes well you just don't realise how much.
I also agree that the club host position is vital. Jo is absolutely outstanding. Her energy levels are unreal! Every day is party day to Jo. She never stops laughing. I love her!

 

[over50visits]

I think the Captain’s impact can be significant but invisible in bad weather. They almost always steer around rough seas, and can make a sea day smooth and relaxing. That’s especially important for hurricanes...(other than Sandy) the ships will steer way clear of the storm and you’ll never know it was there. So a silent but important impact.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Hi,
I'm still relatively new to cruising. I've seen a number of Disney threads about the captain and cruise director. Why are people so interested? what impact do they have on the cruise?

Thanks for the explaining!

Some people feel they make or break the cruise experience.

Personally, I think the Captain's important. He's the one ultimately responsible for all cruise happenings. He's the one who make the decisions as to whether the weather will change the itinerary. He's the one who decides where the ship will go. I like Captain Fabian, and Captain Thord. Captain Andy is nice, but fairly quiet.

Cruise directors - I can take or leave, but my all time favorite was Brent. We hand him on 3 different cruises. He was quite interactive with the guests onboard. Even participating in the "If I Were Not Upon The Sea" skit.

Christiaan I like. Clayton is OK. I've not had a lot of experience with the others. Pretty generic in my book.

 

[ACQUADUCK]

I think the Captain’s impact can be significant but invisible in bad weather. They almost always steer around rough seas, and can make a sea day smooth and relaxing. That’s especially important for hurricanes...(other than Sandy) the ships will steer way clear of the storm and you’ll never know it was there. So a silent but important impact.

Yes, visibility to me the Captain has no effect , all Captains are trained to the same very very high standards so their impact on safety and cruise experience is the same, all high standards.

So yes silent and important.

For cruise experience one captain may have a different perspective and personality but it doesn't change the cruise experience, but a bad CD can impact a cruise, and a good one enhance it.

Natalie is understated and therefore has high impact in other ways. I recall her on port embarkation, there in a staff cruise jumper only with a name badge, offering out drinks, calling elevators, most would miss it thinking she is another crew member.

Brent was never ever anywhere to be seen, until Karl Holtz was on ship, then he suddenly changed and was greating everyone.

 

[TestingH2O]

Last year was the first time we had good interaction with the CD, and we loved Trent and his assistant Carly. I've seen very few positive comments on Darren. I'm hoping he's ok.

ETA - While very different than Trent, we did really enjoy Natalie too but didn’t come away saying “wow” like we did with him.

 

[ACQUADUCK]

Last year was the first time we had good interaction with the CD, and we loved Trent and his assistant Carly. I've seen very few positive comments on Darren. I'm hoping he's ok.

ETA - While very different than Trent, we did really enjoy Natalie too but didn’t come away saying “wow” like we did with him.

Yes she is understated but works so hard.

Rachel with her pixie dust surprise gifts had a heart of gold, she made so many children happy and must have busted the complementary gifts budget.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

On Disney cruises, I couldn't tell you who the captain or cruise director was.

On other cruise lines, I've found both can really enhance the trip.

We've cruised a few times on the Carnival Pride and it's regular Captain is outgoing and friendly. He also runs a tight ship; stopped us once and asked how things were and we told him great - except that we had told someone about the lock sticking on the accessible toilet stall earlier in the day, and no one seemed to have done anything - he whipped out his radio and had it fixed in under 10 minutes. Amazing. He recognizes us when we return and is really a nice man.

we've also had some really excellent CDs on other lines that seem to be everywhere and know everyone. On our last 14 night Carnival cruise I noted at the Doctor Who trivia (that wasn't well attended) that I would love to see Star Trek trivia offered and the fun squad told the CD and she said, "Make it so!" and sure enough, they found a Star Trek trivia and offered it. They also gave me a copy of the questions afterwards!

 

[kiford]

Hi,
I'm still relatively new to cruising. I've seen a number of Disney threads about the captain and cruise director. Why are people so interested? what impact do they have on the cruise?

Thanks for the explaining!

Cruised 10 times on DCL and could care less. Yes, I can say on a particular cruise that this CD is more engaging and charismatic based on their introductions at various activities and interactions but I cannot say that it impacted my vacation one way or the other and I can't remember their name past the cruise or possibly even during the cruise. Asked DH what he thought about it and his reaction was basically "huh"? He didn't even notice. If their interaction is important to you it might make a difference, if not, you probably won't notice or care.

 

[xavier2001]

thanks! that's interesting. I remember trent from Disney Wonder alaska in 2016. i wish i knew the assistant director's name. she was wonderful. i probably remember trent because of his poor response to the chaos that was created at debarkation one day. There was no fun in that.

Wasn't Peter the CD in Alaska 2016? I remember him being very quiet and not outgoing. I do remember the female assistant cruise director and liking her but not remembering her name.