Fartlek

Tipping in Canada is getting crazy. In many provinces the waiters and waitresses are getting paid $15/hr and they expect another 15%-25% tip. Many articles have shown that some are making in excess of $100K with tips. Why is it only waitresses expect a tip and not other minimum salary employees like people that work in grocery stores/hardware, etc. Some self-serve stores (like liquor stores) now ask if you want to leave a tip on the debit machine. There was no help or assistance and they are asking for a tip - forget it. I don't mind the gratuity on a cruise ship but I wish they would just put it in the upfront cost of the cruise. My preference would be to pay the employees a decent salary and charge me accordingly up front. For me, the service would have to be outstanding for me to tip beyond the ship gratuity.

For most, it looks like the sail away has worked out well. I think we will continue to purchase the sail away rate as the savings are usually significant. It is a risk but it looks like it usually works out well. Thanks

We have sailed three times on NCL and two times we took the sail away rate. There are some huge savings with the sail away and the perks (free offers) with the more expensive rates do not appeal to us. Anyway I'm wondering if you were happy with the cabin that you received with the sail away rate? For us, it has worked out well but I guess there is always a chance you could get a not so desirable cabin. Cheers

Alright you have me considering a TA for our next cruise but what about Flights and Hotels. Is there any savings in using a TA for these?

I had no idea that you could save $$ by booking with a Travel Agent. That seems strange as I had always thought that it would be cheaper to book directly with the supplier. I usually tried to avoid third party people as it usually costs extra but I will speak with a travel agent next time to see if there are any savings. I learned something new today. Thanks

For all our cruises, flights, hotels, we have always booked online. I do know a lot of people still use travel agents and I see lots of travel agency companies but I'm not sure why. There must be a reason so what am I missing? Thanks

It would be a very bad idea to pay for a chair. I do not like the idea for so many reasons. It is kind of like a chair hog on steroids and trying to justify it. Very bad idea

If you consider prime time after lunch and someone reserves it for several hours, I agree that is a problem. For me, if you are going to be enjoying the prime locations at the "start" of prime time and one of the first to actually be enjoying the location then I have no problem with people that place a towel much earlier. If you have the desire to reserve early and be the first to enjoy the spot then good on you. I haven't seen NCL remove a towel that was placed early in the morning so I think they use some common sense. During prime time is a different story. Just my thoughts .

I really don't have a huge problem with they guy reserving the chairs that clean1owner outed. So what if the family uses them within an hour (or longer if that is when the sun actually comes out). For a lot of people the prime spot is near the pool / band so I give them credit if they reserve early and beat the rush. For me, I don't have any problem if people reserve early 7:00am +/- and the chair sits vacant until the prime time. However, If people don't use the chairs during the prime time then it seems reasonable to speak with an attendant after an hour or so. There are always lot of places for chair but maybe not at the pool side. For me, I prefer to be away from the loud music and have always found a spot.