LuvBNatC

Have TA's hit final payment yet? Will be interesting to see if they slash prices like they have in past

I don't think my final payment is due until August.

Made a crossing on Vision from Lisbon in 2013 and was able to upgrade from an inside to a balcony about 3 weeks before sailing for about $300. It was totally worth it. :D

I booked my upcoming T/A on Vision during a BOGOHO sale last year. I checked during the current sale and the price for my cabin is about $800 higher now. So I'd say I got a "good deal."

I have noticed that Allure's crossing, I believe at about the same time and also from Barcelona, has had several good price drops, but Vision's prices are holding firm. (I'm hoping for an affordable balcony upgrade at the last minute. :))

I'm amazed by the high quality of the photos taken on ships (certainly much better than my own) and I have albums and albums of them from years past. But the prices have gotten to a point where I rarely stray into the photo gallery anymore.

On the other hand, I usually take a pass at boarding, when the photographers come around the dining room, or are standing at the bottom of the gangway, so I don't feel like I'm wasting supplies.

But I do need a new head shot, so maybe on my next cruise when I'm all dressed up one night, I'll get some portraits taken and see if any will work. It's a relatively painless way to do it.

despite all the posts indicating that longtime loyal RCI cruisers haven't, or aren't, booking new cruises with the line, their ships still seem to be sailing full, so I don't think that RCI really cares if they are losing veteran cruisers as long as they continue to attract new ones and continue to sail at, or near, capacity.

Woe to any company selling a product who doesn't try to retain repeat customers. If RCCL thinks it's going to continue luring an endless herd of cruising newbies who don't really know what they're buying while it prices itself beyond newbies' vacation budget, RCCL is in for a rude awakening after the "loyal to Royal" crowd moves on to other lines.

I've been in sticker shock for some time with Royal. Even though I had just turned Diamond, I booked my last cruise in 2014 on Norwegian Getaway because I couldn't find a decent price for a solo on Royal.

Joke was on me. NCL has lower fares, but nickels and dimes you so much, the final cost was almost a wash. :(

I'm glad you like that option but there are many who do not and who think there are other options they would enjoy better than the same table, same time, same table mates, same waiters, and two formal nights per cruise. Not saying that what you like is bad, it just that others prefer something different.

If by "something different," you mean picking a place to eat, deciding on a night and a time, and making a reservation, I think you're describing exactly what people do on land every day whenever they want to eat at a fancy restaurant.

Personally, I cruise to actually do "something different."

And what was different was traditional dining (I'm not talking about formal nights -- just eating). It took all the planning and uncertainty out of the equation, and threw in finding potential new friends at the table to boot. IMHO it made the evening meal a pleasant no-brainer, UNLIKE what I have to do to round up people to go out for a nice meal at home.

It's looking like DD is quickly morphing into NCL Freestyle, not that there's anything wrong with that. But why an NCL clone when so many passengers remain "loyal to Royal" because they LIKE traditional dining?

My last cruise was Freestyle, and it will probably be my last cruise doing Freestyle. As a solo, I hated it.

Receiving disembarkation information in the cabin before the cruise is even half over.

It's as if almost as soon as you're onboard, they're already plotting to get rid of you. :(

Someone previously (I think on another thread) suggested rotational dining though the DD venues. Perhaps this could work. You would still have a set time, table mates and waiter but you move to a new venue each night. There could be a 'with Grande' option for those who like formal and and a 'without Grande' option for those who don't.

 

Perhaps an area could be reserved for a type of my time which is basically free form, any restaurant, any time, try your luck :)

 

Thoughts?

Fabulous compromise. :D

I have no problem eating in different places each night, but I don't enjoy potluck with serving staff and tablemates (or dining ALONE).

My objection with DD is all the plotting and planning involved. I cruise to think LESS about logistics, not more.

Why RCCL has decided to become NCL's Mini-Me escapes me. Dining wasn't broke, so why try to "fix" it?

And they're giving NCL the ammo to remain one step ahead. In a year or two when NCL is satisfied that the huge marketing database it's compiling of what works and what doesn't is big enough, and passengers show signs of burnout on reserving every freaking thing, NCL will launch a big new media campaign:

"Freestyle" means NO RESERVATIONS -- EVER.

And all the competitors' ships still requiring reservations suddenly will look like bureaucratic cruises from hell.

I feel stupid asking this question but since we're going on the Enchantment soon which has shower curtains I thought I better ask. How and where would you attach the chip clip to avoid the curtain attacking you. At home, we have shower curtains with the magnets that stick to the tub but I'm sure it's just a shower stall on the ship. I can't picture in my mind where the chip clip would go. Thanks for any advice.

Sorry, I posted before I saw this.

I placed two clips on the bottom, each a few inches in from the left and right edges. This kept the curtain from getting clingy.

Of course, you can adjust as needed.

Grandeur of the Seas still has shower curtains. Big all-plastic clips I found at Dollar Tree (no metal to leave a rust stain on the curtain) held it down nicely.

I vote NO to free WiFi !!!!!

 

We just returned from Grandeur into Baltimore. Up until we had wifi/phone service from land people had actually been looking at one another and talking to each other.

We came in reach of land service and out came the phones and tablets - and stop went face-to-face interaction.

Example ... a party of 4 adults sharing a couch in the Schooner Bar ... all staring at their cell phones. They might as well have been sitting home alone for all the good the ship was to them at that point.

 

Don't flame me ... I'm entitled to my opinion ... and that opinion is that a cruise is a good way to enhance face-to-face communication.

I second this.

Recently returned from Norwegian Getaway, which offers a free WiFi app called iConcierge. I used it in my cabin a few times to read menus for dinner at night, but not sure what else it can do.

As I walked around the ship, I noticed more people glued to their smartphone screens and even yakking on the phones than I'd ever seen on a ship before.

If the day comes when most cruisers stay as engrossed in their devices and as rude to all around them in the here and now as they are on land, what's the point of cruising?

Free WiFi would just make that day come faster, IMHO.

I had never received any pins myself, but on my last RCI cruise I spoke to the loyalty ambassador onboard, who checked my history, and gave me an emerald pin and the one I should have gotten before that.

I've laminated the tag, poked a hole in one end, and made a metal loop out of a simple, cheap keychain with a spring fastener I found at Home Depot. I think it came in a pack of 2 or 3.

Also have used the CC skinny luggage tags with an NCL tag I printed.

Yes

Thank you for answering my question about giving liquor to crew. :)

Once, 7 days in to a 13-day transatlantic on Vision OTS, I did give my steward something tangible in addition to an extra tip.

Our CC Roll Call had had 100 commemorative lapel pins made up for that ship, that crossing. Before long, they were popping up on lapels everywhere, including the cruise director's.

I had bought an extra one, and left it with my interim tip. My steward seemed genuinely pleased. She could have thrown it away after the sailing. But for that voyage, she was one of the "special CC 100." :D

Question: Are the crew on RCI really allowed to accept bottles of liquor from passengers?

I ask because I just returned from Norwegian Getaway, where I had to leave 2 unopened bottles of sparkling wine in my cabin. I tried to give them to my steward, but he said the crew was strictly forbidden from drinking alcohol at any time, so he couldn't accept them.

I also enjoy dancing even though I am no Fred Astaire. If a lady goes to the nightclub chances are that she would like to dance. So all one has to do is ask. I have found that most women, single or attached, will say yes. However it is incumbent on the man to be properly dressed, well mannered and gracious. After dancing escort the lady back to her seat and offer your thanks and return to your own seat. Do this a few more times and it will become apparent that you also came to dance. At this time you might find that the ladies will ask you to dance.

Rich60, you have stated the winning formula with 100% precision. :D

Why aren't there more men like you on my cruises?

Utterly baffled by this question.

The OP has the capability to post here.

The OP has the capability to log on to myNCL and see "check in online."

Yet OP does not seem to want to check in online.

I'm surprised so many patient and reasonable answers have been offered. This is usually the type of pointless pot-stirring that quickly ignites the short fuses.

Could we be mellowing? :D

Have bought many rings with all types of stones and settings from many small jewelers throughout the Caribbean, as well as some of the big-name chains. Have never been burned nor had a quality issue with a single one. (Knock on wood) :D

Bought a Citizen watch from a small shop on St. Thomas in 1995. The owner sized the band for me, I wore it out of the store and then every single day until 2012, when I finally replaced it. But it STILL runs like a charm.

I pay scant attention to which merchants the ships recommend because it's a business arrangement for them, not any real guarantee of quality. Many small, honest merchants get passed over because they can't afford to pay the cruise line a cut. Those are the ones I seek out because they want/need good word of mouth to stay in the game.

I pay a LOT of attention to the store, the merchandise, and the salesperson. If anything seems fishy, I walk away.

You have to trust your own judgment.

"

None of those wistful women were ever with me! I have found that most partnerless women who like to dance will do it with another woman which makes it difficult for a man to ask her. Effectively leaving the solo men out to just stand by and watch (with a wistful expression)

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Count yourself in the minority. Women only dance with other women when they can't find a man to dance with. It isn't a preference (unless that happens to be their preference ;) ).

Even when I took ballroom lessons and went to the weekly "practice" dances, the women lining the walls would complain about all the guys standing around talking football through lots of good songs.

It's probably fear of rejection, or fear that some woman they don't know will take the invite wrong and glom on to them. Or they'll ask someone with 2 left feet and have to push her around the floor like a shopping cart. Lots of reasons.

I have asked men to dance, if I've seen them dancing with other women and they don't seem to be wearing a leash. They always say yes!

Women who want to dance and know how to do it will usually try to sit near the floor and they'll pay attention to the music and people dancing. AND they will be wearing shoes they can dance in, not sneaks or flip-flops. Ask one of them, and you'll probably get a dance.

Women sitting around looking dejected, far back from the floor, or having conversations with girlfriends, more iffy proposition.

Cruising led me to take up ballroom dancing and I took lessons for 7 years. Ultimately gave it up because I never found a regular partner and got sick of going to dances and holding the wall up with all the other partnerless women.

Glad to hear there are a few men willing to get out there and dance. A ship's dance instructor once said, "I don't know why any man wouldn't learn to dance. He could have his pick of any woman on any ship."

Look around any dance floor and you'll see many women with wistful expressions tapping their toes while the guy with them pretends he isn't hearing any music. :)

For me, the way to find partners is to take the group lessons. Yes, I'm usually one of the stray women, so I offer to do the man's part with another woman. That gets me noticed, and any single guys know I can dance and won't make them look bad on the floor if they ask me.

And usually, the instructor will ask me for a few dances if he's out and about. Works like a charm every time! :D

Interesting how some are rationalizing NCL's poor records management as "business as usual" like they keep cruise histories on handwritten index cards or something.

Have you ever contacted a company you had a single, casual transaction with many years ago, only to have them verify, through the miracle of caller ID, your name and address?

Some months ago, I briefly visited NCL's website doing some preliminary research. By NO MEANS was I a regular visitor. Yet within an hour or 2, out of the blue I got a phone call from NCL asking if they could help me.

They were able to track me online without me providing ANY identifying info to their site, and contact me by phone, by NAME.

Indicates to me that their IT is pretty darn crackerjack when they want it to be, and expecting a prompt fix to a cruise history problem (after providing proper documentation) isn't unreasonable.

Meg, have enjoyed your commentary. Welcome home! Looking forward to your closing thoughts and photos.

Could you tell me who was captain on your sailing?

Reading these posts has me thinking: What is the point of even having a Loyalty Program if your points can suddenly disappear or be deemed ineligible? This is a big part of my frustration and confusion, as well as being seemingly attacked as NOT loyal just because I don't cruise every year, and with NCL. I cruised NCL in the past, and even more important, I'm coming back to NCL, aren't I?

 

For example, I have several credit cards and I only use one on a daily basis. One is a department store card that I use maybe every 5 years? Yet I am not told I don't deserve or qualify for the promotions since I don't use that card ALL the time...I mean, isn't this the main issue? Besides NCL apparently having poor records management, of course.

Very good point. This isn't the first time a cruise line has changed a loyalty program, and loyal customers have ended up with the short end of the stick.

While I was sorting out my mess with NCL, I had three 7-day sailings deemed "ineligible" because they were booked at a discount through an NCL employee, although I'm 99.99% certain I had received credit for them before.

Rules change. Maybe they'd rather lure new customers than retain the ones they've already won. You can question the wisdom of that thinking, but it's ultimately up to NCL.

Very good point.

 

I agree - they should give you the points.

 

I also agree with someone that said there is almost ZERO perks at that level anyways. So, why go through the effort unless you are planning to become a regular cruiser.

If we only had crystal balls that could foretell every cruise we will ever take and which line it will be on. :D

I think there's merit to setting the record straight now, regardless of what "perks" may result. The longer you wait, the more difficult it gets. Data disappears.

As I've said before, it's been 8 years since my last NCL cruise, but I was once a cheerleader for NCL, pom-poms and all. ;) In one week I'm giving NCL another chance on Getaway. Six months ago I had no idea I'd ever sail with NCL again, but the price was right, so there you go.

NCL may lure me back from Royal Caribbean. I'm keeping an open mind.

The OP is justified in pursuing this, IMHO.

As for waiting 10+ years, my mistake for assuming NCL could keep their records straight. This is obviously their mistake, as they credited me for a cruise in 2002 but missed the ones before and after that??

:D:D:D I had the same reaction. I've been sailing mostly Royal Caribbean since my first Freestyle cruise back in 2006, and it never occurred to me to check my NCL cruise history until I recently booked Norwegian Getaway because it had always been right.

What a rude awakening! I've had 24 cruises with NCL, and the history was such a mess, it took me literally HOURS to sort out all the errors so I could even begin to address them.

It was like someone in IT threw all the data into the air, and whatever fell into a certain box got kept, even if it landed totally scrambled. The rest was discarded.

I prepared a spreadsheet showing all their info and my corrections (color-coded), so all someone had to do was check their records against mine. I did provide reservation numbers, dates, ship, cabin numbers, itineraries, etc.

As the fixes were made, they showed up instantly on the website so I could track progress and see which voyages hadn't been fixed so I could supply more proof.

In my case, I was already Platinum so it didn't change my status, but I should think if you can get this sorted out before you leave, you would sail at your correct status.

I just got off the phone with an NCL rep. Here is the problem: I cruised 4x with NCL (1999, 2001, 2002, and 2003). For some reason I've only been credited with 2001 and 2003. I'm sailing the Breakaway in one week and I've emailed Latitudes 3x in the last 4 weeks, and received no response. I emailed some photos to prove I was on the other two cruises. Here are the lame excuses I received today:

 

You've BEEN credited your 14 points. (I should have 28 points, she didn't seem to understand.)

 

You are purged from the system in 4-5 years

 

They changed latitudes a few years ago.

 

It takes 4-6 weeks (she said up to 90 days!!!! Are you freaking kidding? Hire more people!) to process Latitudes issues.

 

The rep I spoke to says Latitudes actually doesn't even have a phone number (number on site links you to reservations). I feel like calling corporate, but will that solve anything? What if I just take it up with Latitudes onboard the ship?

 

:mad::mad::mad:

I've just been through this myself, and DID get all my points all the way back to 1988, and I haven't sailed with NCL in 8 years. So, yes, correction can happen -- if you persist like a pit bull.

I was told by some clerk at Corporate that Latitudes only operates by email -- NO phone calls. It's the department dedicated to loyal customers, yet refuses to speak to them. Classic.

The website says an emailed correction request takes 6-8 weeks. I waited 10 weeks, then got on the phone. Don't waste your time calling. It's useless. I got a total runaround, transferred to several people who couldn't do a freaking thing.

Yes, the system was changed a few years ago, and yes, data was lost. NCL seems to have no interest in accuracy now except on a case-by-case basis.

No, you are NOT purged after 4-5 years. For me, it had been 8 years, and they still had a spotty record on me back to 1988.

I suggest you escalate the matter to management. I went to the NCL website and found the SVP of "Consumer Research" and wrote him an email. (Tip: The email format is: first initial last name@ncl.com. For example, a Joe Smith would be jsmith@ncl.com. And this SVP goes by his shortened first name, just as it's on the site.)

I received a response within a day from this man, who delegated the matter, and it took several weeks of back and forth to salvage all 52 points I'd been shorted.

Warning: providing pictures of yourself on a cruise may not be proof enough without hard facts. I had reservation numbers and actual tickets and they proved not always convincing enough.

I feel pretty sure taking it up with Latitudes on the ship will get you nowhere.

Good luck!